No let up in pre-poll violence; 12 more devoured

• Five people killed in bombing in candidate’s election office in Kohat, three killed in Peshawar
• Three killed in bombing, firing incidents in Swabi
• Child killed as corner meeting of election candidate bombed in Quetta

At least 11 more people were killed on Sunday in various bombings across the country, as the pre-poll election violence left the authorities scratching their heads and raising serious doubts over the possibilities of elections being held on May 11.

Sunday’s killings came in Peshawar, Kohat, Quetta and Swabi, where election candidates and offices were attacked by militants without remorse.

In attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, at least nine people were killed and more than 30 others injured in bomb attacks and firing against election offices and aspirants.

In Peshawar, a high-intensity improvised explosive devise (IED) went off in Maqsood Abad area on Charsadda Road near the office of an independent election candidate, which killed three people and injured 12 others.

The office belonged to Nasir Khan Afridi, an independent candidate from NA-46 Khyber Agency. The explosion occurred when a large number of people were present at the site.

Afridi himself remained safe in the attack, the victims were said to be his close relatives and supporters.

Afridi said he had erected billboards and displayed banners with messages against militants in the constituency he was contesting elections from, which could be the reason for the attack.

Doctors at LadyReadingHospital said several of the injured were in critical condition.

Earlier in the day, the election office of another independent candidate from Orakzai Agency was targeted in Kohat with around 10 kilogrammes of explosives.

At least five persons were killed on the spot, while the condition of several amongst the 22 left injured was critical.

The office of Noor Akbar Orakzai was adjacent to the office of Khurshid Begum, an Awami National Party candidate for a National assembly seat from Kohat.

Though Khurshid Begum remained safe, her office and vehicle were badly damaged. A number of other vehicles, shops and buildings in the vicinity were also damaged.

In Swabi, unidentified men shot dead the brother of Awami National Party candidate Mohammad Islam, who is contesting polls from PK 35 Swabi (V) constituency.

Also in Swabi, two people were killed and five others, including a policeman, injured when a bomb ripped through a public meeting of Awami National Party (ANP) at Rafiqabad area of the district.

Per details, the explosion occurred when a public meeting of ANP candidate Ameer Rehman was in progress.

Two people were killed on spot, while five others were injured.

Swabi DPO Dr Saeed said the explosion was triggered by a remote controlled device.

The injured were shifted to nearby hospital and a search operation was started to arrest the culprits.

The violence extended to Quetta as well, where a boy was killed and five others injured in a blast in Faizabad area, Saryab police precincts.

Police said the explosive planted on a bicycle went off as a corner meeting of Shams Mengal, an independent candidate from PB-5, Quetta-5 was taking place at a house in the area.

As a result, a child was killed on the spot and five others sustained injuries.

Identity of deceased child and injured could not be ascertained immediately. Police and FC teams reached the site soon after the incident and shifted the injured to a nearby hospital.