There seems to be no respite to attacks on political gathering as the elections near. What was only confined to the left leaning or as they call themselves liberal parties, has now spread to the other side of the spectrum too.
JUI (F) and JI are by no means left leaning liberal parties, but they too find themselves under the TTP radar. The PTI too has witnessed attacks on its campaign rallies, albeit, of a much lesser magnitude.
That the campaign despite the obvious threats is still going on is heartening to see. But how will it affect the average voter on the polling day remains to be seen. Of the 12 percent respondents who definitely opted not to vote, in the recent opinion poll by Gallup Pakistan, majority have stated the threat of riots on polling day as the reason they are going to abstain this time.
Threat of riots is the prime reason for 29 percent of vote abstainers. Now that the scope of attacks has gone past just the left leaning parties, the threat also appears bigger. It is unfortunate that nearly four percent of potential voters have abstained because of a likely law and order situation.
In an event where the voter turnout is tipped to be a key determinant of the final result, losing four percent potential voters does not bode well, especially for those who are banking heavily on an increased voter turnout.
What remains most worrisome is the situation on the Election Day. How will the voters react should an unfortunate event take place in the early polling hours? Remember, it is already going to be a hot day, hotter than ever before on any election day in Pakistan. It is sad that a variable as vital as voter turnout has come to this. Surely Pakistan deserves better than being at the perils of a handful of terrorists.
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