Pakistan election far from free, fair: Gazain Marri

Islamabad [Pakistan]: Gazain Marri, son of Baloch politician Nawab Khair Bakhsh Marri, has alleged that the forthcoming general election in Pakistan on July 25 is being openly managed and results have been decided beforehand.

Accusing that the election is 'tampered', Marri in a telephonic interview with Marvi Sirmed of the Daily Times said that it is "far from free and fair."

The Baloch leader who claimed to be under house arrest since July 13, further alleged that the entire process, including the security personnel, were involved in manipulating the electoral process in Balochistan.

Marri is contesting the national assembly election against the Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) candidate Dostain Domki from NA 259 Sibbi. He is also contesting from a provincial assembly seat in Kohlu, PB 9, against his brother.

He claimed that he was called by a senior security officer in Quetta for a meeting recently. When he reached, nobody met him despite his waiting there for three days. However, on his return to Sibbi, he was detained for two days.

Once released, he again met an attempt to visit Quetta. On his way to Quetta, he took a longer route to first pay a visit to his constituency Kohlu. On July 13, he was however once again detained in a house of one of his own "influential supporters" in Kohlu, he alleged. Marri claimed that he has been under house arrest since then.

Narrating the incident to the Daily Times correspondent, he said that he was not even being allowed to meet anyone, including his family members.

Meanwhile, Marri's wife Shehrazad said that she has made every effort to get her husband out but all in vain.

She had filed a petition in the Balochistan High Court which ordered his immediate release but no action has so far been taken, according to the Daily Times report quoting Shehrazad Marri.

Marri has claimed that the authorities are allegedly supporting his brother Changez Marri, who is contesting against him from Kohlu, PB 9.

"He is their blue-eyed boy and laadla (pampered) in Balochistan. I have still not been accepted as a patriotic politician, despite what I have gone through", he said.

Marri returned to Pakistan in September 2017 after spending more than a decade in self-imposed exile.