ALMATY: Protests against what many see as a rigged presidential election continued. Hundreds of people were detained by Police in Kazakhstan’s biggest city Almaty. Police were put on high alert overnight.  The vote in which Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, an ally of powerful ex-president Nursultan Nazarbayev, was confirmed as president, has prompted a series of public protests.

Kazakhstan – the tightly controlled oil-rich nation in central Asia does not often go for protests. The Interior Ministry confirmed on Tuesday police detained about 200 people on Monday in addition to 500 held a day earlier over protests which are illegal in the former Soviet republic unless permission is given by the government.

Heavy police presence was visible on the streets of Almaty on Tuesday.  Several National Guard personnel carrier trucks have been parked near the focal spot of the previous two days of rallies.

Authorities have blamed the protests on Democratic Choice of Kazakhstan (DVK), a movement led by fugitive former banker and Minister Mukhtar Ablyazov. He lives in France and routinely attacks Nazarbayev on social media. Kazakh government often responds to this attack by blocking the access to Facebook and Instagram.

(Agencies)