PTI to contest NA 260 election result with 'undeniable evidence of election rigging'

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Times have changed, in the next election voters will hold the fate of the state not the people counting: Babar Awan — File
Times have changed, in the next election voters will hold the fate of the state not the people counting: Babar Awan — File

The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) on Monday decided to challenge the results of the recent NA-260 Quetta-Chagai by-election.

PTI chief Imran Khan discussed the matter with Babar Awan over the phone and decided to come up with a legal strategy to formally contest the election results in light of "undeniable evidence of election rigging."

"Times have changed; in the next election, the people who vote will decide the fate of the state, not the people counting, " Babar Awan said.

"If the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) says it upholds the law, then every word of the Constitution from Article 213 to Article 222 should be enforced completely," he added.

Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam Fazl (JUI-F) had won the NA-260 by-election on Sunday, after a tough contest with the Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M).

According to sources in ECP, the JUI-F candidate, Usman Badini, secured 43,969 votes, whereas, BNP-M's candidate, Sardar Bahadur Khan Mengal, secured 37,786 votes.

The JUI-F candidate was backed by the National Party (NP), a coalition partner in the Balochistan government, as well as MPA Amanullah Notezai.

The by-elections were held after the death of Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) leader Abdul Rahim Mandokhail, who was elected to the seat during the general elections of 2013 on the party's ticket. PkMAP candidate Jamal Tarakai, however, suffered a major blow in Saturday's polls and secured only 20,169 votes.

According to the ECP, a total of 407 polling stations were established in the constituency, out of which 320 polling stations were declared 'most sensitive', 50 were said to be 'sensitive', and 37 polling stations were declared 'normal'.

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