Following claims of government interfering in the Independent Election Commission’s (IEC) affairs, one member of the electoral body said such allegations are personal opinions of certain individuals.

Previously, Maazullah Dawlati, deputy head of IEC operations, accused President Ashraf Ghani of interfering in the election commission’s affairs. 

IEC commissioner Syed Hafizullah Hashemi said the remarks by Dawlati do not represent the IEC’s stance.

A decision to stamp a copy of identity cards created a rift among IEC commissioners.

“The fact that (we know) how many people have registered prevents fraud; the second fact is that fraud has been added as a crime in the election law,” Hashemi said.

“Many people have no interest in registering to vote. The reason is because of what happened in past elections,” said Fawzia Kofi, an MP from Badakhshan.

Meanwhile, two MPs blamed government for deceiving people over elections by making different decisions.

“Groups in ARG (Presidential Palace) and particularly the president (Ashraf Ghani) wants to remove from their way those who are at least in favor of transparency in the election,” said Zaheer Sadat, an MP. 

“This country is heading towards a crisis. There is a possibility of division,” claimed Mohammad Sarwar Osmani, an MP.

IEC statistics show that over 2.5 million people have registered in the voter registration process so far.