Is Pakistan military manipulating elections? Caretaker PM's assertive response

Pakistan’s interim prime minister said dismissed the possibility that the country’s military would manipulate the results of the upcoming national elections in the country and try to sabotage the chances of jailed former premier Imran Khan’s party in the polls. Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar asserted that the election body will conduct the vote, not the military.

Why would the poll body chief turn in any sense of the word against me, he told news agency Associated Press.

Pakistan has been in deepening political turmoil since April 2022 when Imran Khan was removed from office following a no-confidence vote in the parliament. He was arrested in early August on corruption charges and sentenced to three years in prison. The term was later suspended though he still remains in jail.

The election commission announced that the polls would take place during the last week in January, delaying the vote which was to be held in November as per the country's constitution.

When the commission sets an exact election date his government “will provide all the assistance, financial, security or other related requirements", the interim PM said.

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On cases against Imran Khan, Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar said, “We are not pursuing anyone on a personal vendetta. But yes, we will ensure that the law is appropriate. Anyone, be it Imran Khan or any other politician who violates, in terms of their political behavior, the laws of the country, then the restoration of the law has to be ensured. We cannot equate that with … political discrimination.”

He called his government’s working relationship with the military “very smooth,” as well as “very open and candid", saying, “We do have challenges of civil-military relationships, I’m not denying that civil institutions in Pakistan have deteriorated in terms of performance for the last many decades but the military is disciplined and has organizational capabilities.”

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