ISLAMABAD / LAHORE: While Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) is celebrating its victory in PP-52 (Sambrial) by-election, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) on Wednesday alleged that there was an ‘organised rigging’ during the voting on June 1.

The allegation was levelled by PTI Central Information Secretary Sheikh Waqas Akram during at a press conference in Islamabad.

Mr Waqas, who was accompanied by party’s Punjab chief organiser Aliya Hamza and other party leaders, said that there was widespread rigging and the entire process was pre-planned.Sheikh Waqas said that Aliya Hamza and other party workers protested outside the returning officer’s office to seek his attention to rigging but to no avail.

He alleged that on election day police officials removed PTI workers from the election offices and polling stations rather than maintaining the law and order situation.

Waqas also alleged that the voters were threatened and during polling filled ballot boxes were replaced with already filled ones, which were brought from the outside. He said that election camps of the PTI were removed but PML-N workers were not disturbed.

He said that according to rules vote counting should have been done during presence of polling agents of PTI but it was not ensured, rather PTI agents were expelled from there by force.

He said it was strange that the turnout of the by-election was higher than the general election and PML-N candidate, who secured 58,000 votes despite rigging during general elections, got 78,000 votes during by-election.

AZMA: Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari dismissed rigging allegations.

In a statement, she said according to the FAFEN report, 116 polling agents expressed satisfaction with the electoral process. “This report says the presiding officers duly provided Form 45 to polling agents, and out of 121 interviews conducted, 116 polling agents confirmed their satisfaction with the voting process,” she said.

Azma Bokhari further said the vote share of tge PML-N in Sambrial increased from 41 to 59 per ecnt while PTI’s dropped from 35 to 29pc.

Published in Dawn, June 5th, 2025