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KARACHI: The stage is set for conducting the election of senators from Sindh on Friday as is the case in the other provinces where candidates did not return uncontested.
Twelve senators would be elected from each province to replace those whose term will be completed on March 11.
In Sindh two senators against reserved seats of technocrats have already returned uncontested. They are Abdul Hafiz Shaikh of the PPP and Muhammad Farogh Naseem of the MQM.
The electoral college, comprising 166 members of the Sindh Assembly, would exercise their right to elect seven senators on general seats, two on reserved seats of women and one on reserved seat of the minorities while candidates in the run are eight, three, and two, respectively.
They are: Saeed Ghani, Karim Ahmad Khwaja, Mukhtar Ahmad Aajiz Dhamra and Mian Raza Rabbani of the PPP and Syed Mustafa Kamal and retired Col Tahir Mashhadi of the MQM and Syed Muzaffar Hussain Shah of the PML-F while the eighth candidate, Abdul Ghaffar Qureshi, is independent.
Against two women’s seats, the candidates are Mudasir Sehar Kamran of the PPP, Nasreen Jalil of the MQM while Yasmin Farrukh is independent.
On the one seat of the minorities, the candidates are Hari Ram from the PPP and Photo Mal alias Dileep, who is independent.
The party position in the house of 168 as stands today is : PPP 93, MQM 51, PML-F eight, PML-L five, PML-Q five and ANP two.
Dr Arbab Rahim is abroad and as such would not be able to cast his vote while until the result of PS-53 is notified Waheeda Shah of the PPP, who was earlier declared elected unofficially would not be able to cast her vote.
According to the formula for election to the general seats at least 21 votes are required, against reserved seats of technocrat and women 56 votes and for the seat of the minorities 84 votes are needed.
The independent candidates in the run belong to the PML-L party which has only four active votes due to the absence of Dr Arbab Rahim. There is thus no possibility of independents winning any seats and all indications point to the victory of the PPP, MQM and PML-F candidates as they have already reached an understanding regarding elections of senators and filed candidates accordingly.
Conceding this fact, MPL-L spokesman Abdul Razzaq Rahimoo told Dawn on Thursday night that they were in the field for the sake of exercising their democratic right to contest despite knowing that none of their candidates was going to win any seat as they had only four votes. However, even if they manage to get a single extra vote, it would make a dent in the closed shop of the PPP and the MQM.
Sindh Election Commissioner Sono Khan Baloch would act as the returning officer to conduct the elections while there would be four polling officers — — Regional Election Commissioner Tanveer Zaki, Director Election Commission Muhammad Najeeb, Deputy Director Masood Qureshi and District Election Commissioner Sain Bux Channar.
The polling would be held in the Sindh Assembly building in Committee Room # 1 which has been declared a polling station where use of cell phones would be prohibited and no person other than polling agents and the election commission staff on duty would be allowed to enter aside from the voters.
There would be one ballot box where members would cast all three ballot papers - white one for general seats, pink for reserved seats of women and yellow for the non-Muslim seat.
In reply to a question, Returning Officer Sono Khan Baloch said that media persons would not be allowed to enter the polling station after start of the voting. However, they could talk to voters or do filming in the corridors of the assembly.
Later, after close of voting, they could access the polling station at the time of counting and announcement of the result. Mr Baloch said that according to the election commission there are 167 eligible voters as the result of PS -53 was not yet notified.
The polling hours would be from 9 am to 4 pm, he added.
