Election violence could mar the democratic transition
Another warning shot was fired on Saturday in Peshawar. Only that it was more than a mere warning shot: 10 people died. The Taliban is the orchestrator of the pre-poll terrorism in Khyber Pakthunkhwa, whose objective is to destablise the upcoming elections. Karachi, Balochistan and KP have already shown signs of the upcoming turmoil as we move closer to the date of the general elections. The premonitions had been seen and in many ways political parties tried to premeditate them in the so-called peace talks with the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in the months immediately before the dissolution of the assemblies. While some suggest that strict measures need to be taken, there are others who think that we will just have to get used to the violence and attempts at disruption.
At times, attacks appear to be the product of local election rivalries, such as the bombing of an independence candidate’s election office in Miranshah in North Waziristan. The candidate was a former legislator who was known to support the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP). The attack could be easily local rivals attacking him under the garb of the fear of the TTP. Nonetheless, the TTP factor shall most significantly affect the KP polls, unless a solution to the matter is found, and soon. But, at other times, especially in Balochistan, attacks appear to target state and law enforcement officials. A policeman was just gunned down in Quetta, where a DSP was killed only last week. Moreover, the discovery of two ‘killed-and-dumped’ bodies of missing persons on Saturday shall also spark more resentment amongst Baloch nationalists, whom the caretaker setup has been trying to woo into the mainstream.
The law and order situation in Pakistan is far from ideal as a month is left to the polls. Incidents that appear to be confined to parts of KP and Balochistan may spread across all four provinces if not nipped in the bud now. But then it does not merely mean increasing the grip of the security apparatus, rather as the Balochistan Governor was told by returned Baloch nationalist Akhtar Mengal that “authorities were not taking any step to stop dumping of bullet-riddled bodies of missing persons” and that “this phenomenon depicted the policies of Islamabad about Balochistan”. The fact is that the violence in Balochistan can be controlled – if our caretakers in the establishment decide they want to change their perspectives – but if not, then the wave of pre-elections shall see its tide rise. Either the caretaker setup will need to up the ante to curb the spells of violence breaking out now – or election violence shall become the eerie backdrop upon which voters come out to cast their preferences on elections day.