Mass Rigging Charged Ahead of Pakistan Vote

Pakistan's postponed parliamentary elections will finally take place on Monday, but allegations are flying that Pervez Musharraf's party has already rigged the vote. Pakistan's intelligence agencies have "pre-stuffed" ballot boxes, confiscated voter ID cards, and appointed party apparatchiks in key rural constituencies, a retired senior intelligence officer told the Telegraph. Musharraf 's party is a clear underdog in the election.

An American-conducted survey suggested that about 50% of citizens would support the Pakistan People's Party, led by Benazir Bhutto's widower, Asif Ali Zardari—with 22% backing Nawaz Sharif's Muslim League and only 14% favoring Musharraf's party. Despite the president's denial of vote fraud, the US State Department has said it expects rigging in Monday's poll and is worried about the prospect of post-election violence. (More Pakistan stories.)