The counting of votes is under way as polling concluded in 63 local body seats in five divisions of Sindh on Sunday.

According to Radio Pakistan, the polling process started at 8am and ended at 5pm without any break in Karachi, Hyderabad, Sukkur, Larkana and Shaheed Benazirabad divisions.

In a statement, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) said that the polling process in the province’s 24 districts began on time.

The commission said that the exercise was being monitored by the central control room in Islamabad where ECP Special Secretary Zafar Iqbal was present alongside the monitoring team.

It further said that complaints at some polling stations had been resolved on the spot, adding that they were related to scuffles between political workers.

The electoral watchdog also shared pictures of citizens making their way to polling stations to exercise their right to vote.

“Polling for Sindh by-elections continues, with a large number of voters including women, elderly and differently-abled persons casting their votes in all 24 districts in a hassle-free and peaceful environment,” the ECP said.

In Karachi division, polling is underway for 26 local government seats in 11 union committees (UCs) with candidates belonging to the ruling PPP, Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) and PTI, along with many others, contesting the polls on 26 local government seats.

With a total of 246 UCs in seven districts of Karachi, elections were held in 235 UCs on January 15 after polling in 11 constituencies were postponed due to the deaths of candidates over the past few months.

In district Central, voting is underway in UC-4 and UC-13 of New Karachi and UC-6 of North Nazimabad.

Similarly, the officials said, polling is underway in UC-2 of Korangi, UC-3 of Shah Latif Town and UC-8 of Landhi of Korangi district.

“In West district, polling is scheduled for UC-1 and UC-2 in Orangi Town and UC-8 of Mominabad while in districts South and Keamari, there is only one UC each, UC-2 in Bihar Colony and UC-2 in Baldia Town, where the by-elections are due on Sunday,” said an official.

In other parts of Sindh, 19 districts of four divisions — Hyderabad, Sukkur, Shaheed Benazirabad and Larkana — will witness the local government elections on 37 different seats, where a large number of candidates are contesting polls from different political platforms.

“There are a total of 690,295 registered voters for these by-elections of local bodies across Sindh, who will exercise their right to vote on Sunday,” an official said.

“There are 449 polling stations across the province and none of them is being treated as normal. Some 292 polling stations among them are highly sensitive while the rest are sensitive. At all the highly sensitive polling stations, CCTV cameras have been installed for security reasons.”

Violence in Hyderabad’s UC-119

A statement from the ECP spokesperson said that electoral violence was reported between supporters of two political parties in Hyderabad’s UC-119, adding that the commission had taken notice, halted polling and directed the deputy returning officer to provide a report and lodge a first information report against the culprits.

“Strict action is taken against perpetrators across the board,” the spokesperson said.

The statement added that ECP Secretary Omar Hamid instructed Sindh’s chief secretary and inspector general of police to take strict action against the perpetrators and also ordered polling staff to submit a comprehensive report to the commission.

The ECP secretary also talked to the officers concerned and Hyderabad’s senior superintendent of police regarding the matter and issued similar instructions to them.