ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) took the lead in the first local government (LG) polls held in the federal capital since 1979, Radio Pakistan reported.

Unofficial election results available on Tuesday reveal the PML-N secured 21 seats, with rival Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf coming in second, winning 16 seats.

Independent candidates emerged as the third largest entity, grabbing a total of 13 seats.

Residents of Islamabad went to the polls on Monday amidst tight security to elect local representatives for the first time under the newly-minted Islamabad Local Government Act, 2015.

The last such exercise was held under military rule in 1979 on a non-party basis and was limited to rural areas only.

Islamabad, which now has a population of around two million, had been divided into 50 union councils for the polls.

Around 2,407 candida­tes took part in the elections, of which 972 were independent candidates, 506 belonged to PML-N, 479 to PTI, 164 to Jamaat-i-Islami and 81 to the PPP, according to the Election Commission of Pakistan.

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