KARACHI: The electoral alliance of the Pakistan People’s Party and Muttahida Qaumi Movement, which had fielded five and two candidates respectively for seven general seats of the Senate from Sindh, got all their candidates elected on Thursday.

According to unofficial results announced by returning officer S.M. Tariq Quaderi, PPP candidate Islamuddin Shaikh secured highest number of votes – 24, followed by MQM’s Khushbakht Shujaat and Mohammad Ateeq Sheikh 22 each, PPP’s Gyanchand and Salim Mandviwalla 21 each and Abdul Latif Ansari and Abdul Rehman Malik 20 each.

Imamuddin Shauqeen, the joint candidate of PML-F and PML-N, could bag only 13 votes while he was expected to get 18 – 10 of PML-F and 8 of PML-N.

Mr Quaderi, who is the provincial election commissioner, said that of the 167 lawmakers, 163 cast their votes. Official results would be notified after the filing of election expenses by the winners.

Commenting on the results, Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah said the peaceful, transparent and free of horse-trading elections would strengthen the democratic system. The PPP always emerged victorious in free and fair elections, he added.

Leader of Opposition Shahryar Khan Mahar said his party’s apprehensions about horse-trading had been vindicated. “We had expected to receive 18 votes, but our candidate managed to get only 13, indicating horse-trading of five votes.”

Published in Dawn, March 6th, 2015

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