-
Questions raised as MNA Nawaz chairs Punjab govt meetings
-
PTI plans long march, sit-in against ‘rigging’ after Eid
-
11 file papers for Nawabshah seat vacated by Zardari
-
For more on our elections coverage, go here
Get the latest news and updates from Dawn
Questions raised as MNA Nawaz chairs Punjab govt meetings
PTI plans long march, sit-in against ‘rigging’ after Eid
11 file papers for Nawabshah seat vacated by Zardari
For more on our elections coverage, go here
The Election Commission of Pakistan has announced the unofficial preliminary result of Peshawar’s NA-30, declaring PTI-affiliated candidate Shandana Gulzar as the winner with 78,971 votes.
PTI-backed independent candidate Sher Ali Afridi has bagged Peshawar’s PK-77 constituency as per unofficial results from the Election Commission of Pakistan.
He took 30,544 votes.
PTI-backed independent candidate Ali Shah has bagged Swat’s PK-4 constituency as per unofficial results from the Election Commission of Pakistan.
He took 30,022 votes.
The Election Commission of Pakistan has announced the “winners” of two seats for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial assembly as per unofficial results.
The commission said that independent candidate Samiullah Khan won 18,888 votes according to results from 37.62 per cent of the polling stations for PK-76.
As for PK-6, independent candidate Fazal Hakeem Khan took 25,330 votes.
The two are PTI-backed candidates.
The Election Commission of Pakistan has begun announcing the provisional results of the general elections 2024.
ECP Special Secretary Zafar Iqbal said the results of two constituencies were received, Peshawar’s PK-76 and Swat’s PK-6.
“Samiullah Khan has been declared the winner from Peshawar’s PK-76,” he said.
He further added that for PK-6, “the winner candidate in this is Fazal Hakeem Khan, an independent.”
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has directed all the provincial election commissioners and returning officers to announce the results within half an hour or else strict action will be taken against them.
In a press release, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, the electoral watchdog said the statements being run by media channels regarding the ECP were not true.
PTI Central Secretary Information Raoof Hasan has claimed that his party is leading on at least 125 National Assembly seats “by huge margins”.
“In due course of time, we shall be in a position to form governments at the centre and at least two of the four provinces,” he said in a video message posted on party’s X account.
He thanked people for reposing their confidence “in their leadership of Imran Khan”.
PTI lawyer Abuzar Salman Niazi has said that the returning officer (RO) of the NA-128 constituency has issued an order to kick out candidates and election agents from his office.
In a post on X, he posted the alleged order issued by the RO.
UN Secretary General Antonio has urged political leaders and society segments to maintain a “calm atmosphere” as the results of the elections are being tabulated.
“I continue to follow the situation in Pakistan closely, including the general elections that took place today,” the UN chief said in a statement e-mailed to APP.
“I am also concerned about reports of incidents of violence and casualties, and the suspension of mobile communications services,” he said.
“As Pakistan awaits the results of the elections, I encourage all political leaders and society segments to maintain a calm atmosphere, as well as refrain from the use of violence and any actions that could increase tensions.
“It is important that all candidates and supporters ensure that human rights and the rule of law are fully respected in the interest of the Pakistani people and resolve any disputes that might arise through established legal procedures. “
Section 84 of the Election Rules, 2017 outlines the procedure for the announcement of provisional results.
The announcement of the results is still being awaited hours after polling ended at 5pm on Friday for the general elections 2024.
The section is reproduced below:
PPP leader Murad Ali Shah has claimed the party’s lead over 10 National Assembly seats in Karachi.
Talking to Geo News, the former Sindh chief minister took digs at the Muttahida Qaumi movement-Pakistan.
The PTI has said its supporters have “shocked and worried the entire system with the historic turnout” during the general elections 2024.
It has alleged that election results are now being withheld “fearing the historic victory” of the party.
Cellular services have been restored in parts of Karachi after being suspended during the day for voting during the general elections.
A Dawn staffer corroborated that 3G and 4G services were also restored partially.
The PTI has said “unprecedented voter turnout” has stunned the entire system and alleged that attempts were being made to “alter” the poll results.
In a post on X, the party appealed to the voters to head to their respective polling stations in order to prevent the alleged manipulation of election results.
Hammad Azhar has claimed that PTI-affiliated candidates are in the lead according to data from the Election Commission of Pakistan.
“God willing the next government will be led by PTI and Imran Khan will be the prime minister,” Azhar said in a post on X.
The former federal minister thanked all the voters for coming out of their homes to exercise their rights.
“The clouds of oppression will end now,” he added.
MQM-P senior deputy convener Mustafa Kamal has said that the responsibility of Karachi, Hyderabad and other urban areas of Sindh has now been given to the party.
Addressing the media in Karachi, he said: “A very big responsibility the people of Sindh’s urban areas have again given to the MQM-P. This is not a worrying matter. We don’t have the option to fail in serving the people.”
He said that as per reports, even “non-traditional” areas and “no-go areas” for the MQM-P had given votes to the party.
Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan convener Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui has claimed that as per reports the party is receiving, the party is leading in up to 18 to 19 National Assembly seats of Karachi.
Addressing the media in Karachi, he said: “Apart from two to three seats in the city’s outskirts, on almost all 18 seats and up to 19 according to another report, the MQM is leading and is on its way to breaking its own record.”
Rai Hassan Nawaz, running as an independent candidate affiliated with the PTI, is leading in the vote count for NA-143 (Sahiwal-III) with 73,489 votes, according to unofficial results.
The runner-up right now is independent candidate Chaudhry Tufail Jutt with 65,438 votes. He is 8,051 votes behind Nawaz, according to Geo News, Dawn News and PTV.
According to Geo News, PTV and Dawn News, at least 51 per cent of the polling stations completed their count around midnight.
PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari has pointed out how electoral “results are incredibly slow coming in”.
However, he said the initial results were “very encouraging” with “PPP candidates and independents” performing well.
The Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) has said that troops stationed outside polling stations are there to provide security till the conclusion of the vote-counting process and have nothing to do with the election process.
In a press release, the ISPR said: “Only the election staff are continuing the vote counting process inside the polling offices.”
It added that the public was expected to fully cooperate with the armed forces till the completion of the process.
PPP leader Saeed Ghani has claimed that voters were not being allowed to enter the office of the returning officer in Karachi East. In a video message, he urged the Election Commission of Pakistan to take immediate notice.
Posts circulating on social media platform X have claimed that PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif is departing for London on the night of February 8.
However, no flight is scheduled for London from Lahore.
The iVerify Pakistan platform checked the Flight Radar 24 online tracker to see the flights operating on the night of Feb 8 from Lahore’s Allama Iqbal International Airport to London but did not find any.
This fact check has been published in partnership with iVerify Pakistan — a project of CEJ and UNDP.
As voters headed to the polls, the influence of Pakistan’s powerful military and the turbulent state of the country’s politics were on full display.
Few doubted which party would come out on top, a reflection of the generals’ hold on Pakistan’s troubled democracy.
But the military is facing new challenges to its authority from a discontented public, making this an especially fraught moment in the nation’s history.
The tension was underlined as Pakistan’s Interior Ministry announced that it had suspended mobile phone service across the country because of the security situation.
Some analysts in Pakistan cast it as an effort to keep opposition voters from getting information or coordinating activities.
Read more here
After five hours of vote counting, an intriguing battle is unfolding in several constituencies: Yasmeen Rashid versus Nawaz Sharif in NA-130, Afzal Hafeez Pahat against Shehbaz Sharif in NA-123, and Rehana Imtiaz Dar against Khawaja Muhammad Asif in NA-71.
As per unofficial and unconfirmed results from specific polling stations until 10:30pm, the following outcomes have been reported:
PTI vice chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi’s daughter Meher Bano Qureshi, running as an independent candidate, is leading in the vote count for NA-151 (Multan) with 26,236 votes, according to unofficial results.
The runner-up right now is PML-N’s Abdul Ghaffar with 18,558 votes. He is 7,678 votes behind Meher Bano, PTV reports.
According to Geo News, PTV and Dawn News, at least 61 per cent of the polling stations completed their count at around 10:45pm.
The PTI has claimed that election results across the country are being delayed after Imran Khan’s candidate emerged victorious.
“There are reports of closure of the screens in the offices of returning officers in several circles,” PTI’s Omary Ayub alleged in a video message on social media platform X.
He warned that attacks on the people’s mandate through a “closed-door conspiracy” or tampering would have negative consequences. Ayun urged PTI workers to stay at polling stations and only leave until they were provided with Form-45.
“The election commission should ensure the immediate release of the results instead of facilitating the scandalous process of tampering with the election results,” he added.
Several persons were injured in clashes between rival parties during the voting process in Karachi, officials said.
Police surgeon Dr Summaiya Syed said four persons including three with bullet injuries were brought to different hospitals. She said the victims were injured during poll-related violence and the condition of one of them was serious.
Providing details, she said a 22-year-old man, identified as Badal Mohammed, was shot at and wounded in Sohrab Goth. Meanwhile, Humayun Taj, 56, suffered a gunshot when workers of two parties clashed outside a polling station in Shah Faisal colony.
In Sachal area, Mohammed Asif, 35, suffered bullet injuries on his leg during a firing incident near a polling station. Separately another man suffered injuries during a clash in the NA-232 and PS-91 constituencies.
Some sporadic incidents of violence were also reported after polling concluded in certain areas of the metropolis. A passerby, Ishaq, 62, was shot at and wounded when two groups resorted to firing in Surjani Town.
Amid reports of clashes and delays, mainstream political parties such as the PPP, Jamaat-i-Islami and PTI have urged the Election Commission of Pakistan to take notice of rigging at polling stations across the country.
In Karachi, the PPP claimed ballot papers were snatched from the electoral staff in the PS-105 constituency. The JI also alleged that MQM-P workers tried to sabotage voting at multiple polling stations. Videos circulating on social media also showed masked men entering polling stations in the metropolis.
From Balochistan, Akhtar Mengal wrote a complaint to the ECP, saying that the station house officer of Quetta had taken “900 votes”.
Similarly, former lawmaker Mohsin Dawar alleged “large-scale rigging” was underway in North Waziristan’s NA-40 (Tappi).
In Punjab, PTI-backed candidate for Sialkot Rehana Dar said the returning officer had refused to give her Form 45.
Former PTI leader Maleeka Bokhari claims rigging is taking place in Bahawalpur’s NA-166.
“This clear violation and rigging was reported to RO who is not taking any action against the opposing Candidate Sami Gillani,” she wrote on X. It must be noted that PTI-backed Kanwal Shauzab was contesting polls from the constituency.
After three hours of vote counting, an intriguing battle is unfolding in several constituencies: Yasmeen Rashid versus Nawaz Sharif in NA-130, Afzal Hafeez Pahat against Shehbaz Sharif in NA-123, and Rehana Imtiaz Dar against Khawaja Muhammad Asif in NA-71.
As per unofficial and unconfirmed results from specific polling stations until 9:15pm, the following outcomes have been reported:
The military’s media affairs wing has congratulated the nation on the “generally peaceful and violence-free conduct of general elections”.
In a press release, the Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) said: “The armed forces and other law enforcement agencies “are proud to have played a pivotal role in providing security during the conduct of the sacred electoral process, in aid of civil power, and in accordance with the constitution of Pakistan.”
“With the deployment of 137,000 army personnel and civil armed forces at approximately 6,000 selected most sensitive polling stations and over 7,800 QRFs, a safe and secure environment for the public was ensured,” it said.
The ISPR stated that “51 cowardly terrorist attacks” were reported mostly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan in which 12 people, including 10 security personnel were martyred and 39 others were injured.
“Through proactive intelligence manoeuvres and swift action, many potential threats were neutralised, underscoring the unwavering commitment of our security agencies to protect the democratic rights of our citizens,” it said, adding that five terrorists were killed in various operations.
“The armed forces remain dedicated to upholding peace and security in the country and stand ready to provide unwavering support in safeguarding the democratic traditions of our state,” the ISPR added.