G-B polls to be held on June 7 as scheduled: chief election commissioner

ISLAMABAD: Chief Election Commissioner Raja Shahbaz Khan has said that election for the Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly will be held on June 7 as scheduled, dismissing reports on social media suggesting a delay as baseless.

Raja Shahbaz said that there would be no change in the election date and that preparations for holding “free, fair and impartial” polls were continuing.

“Any news circulating on social media regarding postponement of the elections is baseless,” he said, according to an official statement.

He said that the G-B Election Commission was committed to ensuring transparent and credible elections in Gilgit-Baltistan, adding that strict action would be taken against violations of the electoral code of conduct.

The commissioner also issued a code of conduct for candidates and political parties ahead of the polls.

Khan said that voter lists had been fully updated and made transparent, with photographs of voters also included to ensure proper verification.

He said modern systems were being used to prepare ballot papers and other electoral materials.

“Every voter will be able to verify their photograph and identity details themselves,” he said.

The chief election commissioner said that all documentation related to local government elections had also been completed.

He said further progress regarding local body elections would be announced in due course.

Earlier, Balawaristan National Front chief Nawaz Khan Naji alleged that there were major discrepancies in the voter lists, saying some voters had been shifted to areas other than their designated constituencies.

He also warned that such actions would deepen divisions and fuel resentment among the people of the region, who he said were already deprived of their basic and constitutional rights.