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KHOST CITY (PAN): The Independent Election Commission (IEC) regional chief has blamed police for stopping them from counting votes cast for presidential and provincial candidates in Thursday's polls.

Dr. Abdul Rahman Muhabat told Pajhwok Afghan News on Friday the police prevented IEC workers after the voting ended at 5:00pm from counting ballots in polling stations set up across Khost City.

Not only IEC officials were stopped from calculating votes, the policemen also disrupted ballot boxes and other materials, Muhabat alleged. He claimed poll workers were forced to shift ballot boxes to the main centre in the provincial capital, something that disrupted the whole activity.

"We planned to collect votes from all stations before announcing the count to observers and campaign managers for candidates. But all our plans went haywire as a result of police intervention," the IEC official regretted.

The counting process was set in motion Friday afternoon after a protest from IEC workers about the police interference, he said, adding they had sent a complain letter to regional offices of the IEC and UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan. A copy of the letter will be handed to police high-ups.

He explained all the votes cast in districts had been counted without any problem. Despite hectic efforts, Pajhwok was unable to reach the police chief for comments on the issue.

frm/mud