The planned deployment of Islamabad Police personnel to Gilgit-Baltistan for election duties has been cancelled due to manpower commitments in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), official sources said.
According to sources, the Gilgit-Baltistan government had requested Islamabad Police assistance to help maintain security during the upcoming Gilgit-Baltistan Legislative Assembly elections.
Under the original plan, personnel from various branches of Islamabad Police were to be dispatched to support local law enforcement agencies. However, officials said a substantial contingent of the force has already been assigned to duties in AJK, limiting the availability of additional personnel.
As a result, the proposed deployment to Gilgit-Baltistan has been put on hold and no final schedule for sending police personnel has been issued.
Meanwhile, at least two people were killed and two others injured in a firing incident during a Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) election rally in the Tangir area of Gilgit-Baltistan.
Police said a child died on the spot after being hit by a bullet, while three others sustained injuries. One of the injured later succumbed to wounds during treatment, taking the death toll to two.
Initial investigations suggest the incident occurred during aerial firing when an AK-47 reportedly slipped from the hands of a rally participant, causing shots to be fired into the crowd.
Police have registered an FIR and launched an investigation into the incident.
