SAHIWAL: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has announced the schedule for a by-election in PP-203 (Sahiwal-VI), following the death of PML-N MPA Chaudhry Muhammad Hanif Jutt.
This is the second by-election scheduled for the constituency following the 2024 general elections.
The seat was initially won by independent candidate Rai Murtaza Iqbal, backed by Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI), who secured 55,874 votes against PML-N’s Chaudhry Hanif Jutt, who polled 35,163 votes.
However, Rai Murtaza Iqbal, along with four other PTI-backed parliamentarians — Sahibzada Hamid Raza (NA-104, Faisalabad), Rai Haider Ali Khan (NA-96, Faisalabad), Rai Hassan Nawaz Khan (NA-143, Sahiwal), and Mohammad Ansar Iqbal (PP-73, Sargodha) — was disqualified and denotified by the ECP following their conviction by an Anti-Terrorism Court in Faisalabad on July 31.
Subsequently, the ECP scheduled a by-election for Nov 23, 2025, which was won by Hanif Jutt with 46,820 votes. His closest rival, independent candidate Falik Sher, secured 10,975 votes.
Hanif Jutt died of cardiac arrest on Sept 17, 2026, necessitating another by-election in the constituency.
According to the latest ECP notification, nomination papers could be submitted until Oct 3, while Oct 21 is the last date for withdrawal of candidature. Polling is scheduled for Nov 8, 2026.
Dawn has learnt from sources that Asad Hanif Jutt, son of the deceased MPA, has submitted his nomination papers for the upcoming by-election.
By Saturday, 10 candidates, including those affiliated with the PML-N and Pakistan People Party (PPP), as well as independent contenders, had submitted their nomination papers to Returning Officer Khudadad Tarar.
Those who filed nomination papers included Chaudhry Muhammad Arshad Jutt, his nephew Asad Hanif Jutt, Shoaib Rahim Withera, Ali Hussain Naqvi, Muhammad Farhan and Muhammad Asif, among others.
The constituency has traditionally witnessed electoral contests between the Jutt brothers of the PML-N and the Rai family associated with PTI.
Published in Dawn, October 4th, 2026
