Karzai heading for historical victory

Afghan leader Hamid Karzai soared ahead in his country's first election vote count as it surpassed the one million mark Monday, but hopes that the outcome will be accepted by opposition candidates sank as his chief rival accused organisers of "robbing the people's vote."

"Unfortunately the organizers of the election committed a coup and robbed the people's vote," said Yunus Qanooni, the favourite of the anti-Taliban alliance of northern commanders, reviving charges of fraud which earlier threatened to derail the process.

Qanooni, who dropped boycott calls last week after agreeing to accept the findings of an international inquiry into alleged irregularities, said fraud occurred before, during and after the landmark October 9 ballot.

With one million ballots or 13 percent of the total vote counted so far, Qanooni lags far behind incumbent president Karzai, with 17.7 percent compared to Karzai's 62.6 percent.

But Qanooni, part of the powerful clique of Tajik strongmen from the Panjshir valley north of Kabul, said he should be polling three times that level.

"According to a survey we expected to get more than 58 percent of the people's vote," he said.

The fraud charges focus on the failure or misuse of indelible ink on the day of the vote. Voters were able to easily wash off ink which was meant to stain their fingers to prevent repeat voting.

Qanooni and 13 other candidates issued boycott calls over the ink problem, and alleged several other irregularities.

"The indelible ink issue was a small issue, it was not a big deal. But there were dozens of other fraud (cases) and irregularities...which I want to say (amounted to) a coup."

A three-person international panel, set up by the United Nations, began probing the alleged irregularities last week after receiving formal complaints from at least four candidates, including Karzai and Qanooni.