Polling for by-elections in two Punjab constituencies — Gujranwala’s NA-77 and Sahiwal’s PP-203 — concluded on Sunday.

Both seats had fallen vacant after the deaths of their respective lawmakers in September. Polling began at 8am and continued till 5pm, with those present inside the polling stations at that time allowed to cast their votes.

NA-77 fell vacant following the death of five-time MNA Chaudhry Mehmood Bashir Virk on Sept 11 after a prolonged illness. His son, Rashid Basheer Virk, is among the candidates contesting the by-election.

Rashid and 17 other candidates have filed nomination papers to contest the constituency, but opposition parties, including the PTI, PPP and Jamaat-i-Islami (JI), have not opted for the by-election.

While the polling was under way, notices, copies of which are available with Dawn, were issued to Punjab MPA Qudsia Batool, MNA Saira Afzal Tarar and Parliamentary Secretary for Information and Culture Shazia Rizwan for alleged violation of the Code of Conduct after reports emerged on social media that the three had visited various polling stations within NA-77, a statement issued by the office of the provincial election commissioner said.

Notices were also issued over alleged violations of the Code of Conduct to MNA Syeda Nosheen Iftikhar and MPA Hina Arshad Warraich for allegedly visiting polling stations.

The officials were directed to appear at the Election Complex in Gujranwala for an explanation at 3pm.

Chief Election Commissioner Sikander Sultan Raja also visited the provincial election chief’s office, where he was briefed on the polling process in both constituencies, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) said.

On Saturday, ECP took notice of an alleged violation of the Code of Conduct by Information Minister Attaullah Tarar during by-election campaigning in NA-77.

According to the ECP, the minister visited the constituency by helicopter and addressed a campaign event for Rashid, violating a provision in the Code of Conduct, which bars public office holders from participating in campaign activities.

The commission has sought a report from the district monitoring officer and the district returning officer to inquire into the matter. It has also directed the minister to appear before the commission in person.

The ECP also said that the result of the constituency could be withheld until a final decision is made on the matter.

PP-203

In Sahiwal’s PP-203, the by-poll was held following the death of PML-N MPA Chaudhry Muhammad Hanif Jutt. This is the second time that a by-election was held in the constituency after the 2024 general elections.

The seat was initially won by independent candidate Rai Murtaza Iqbal, backed by the PTI, with 55,874 votes against Jutt, who polled 35,163 votes.

However, Iqbal, along with four other PTI-backed parliamentarians, 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 Jutt with 46,820 votes. His closest rival, independent candidate Falik Sher, secured 10,975 votes.

Jutt died of cardiac arrest on Sept 17 this year, necessitating Sunday’s by-election in the constituency.

Around 1,370 polling personnel, including 574 women and 796 men, were deputed at 185 polling stations across the constituency.

Meanwhile, District Police Officer Usman Tipu said 1,100 personnel had been deployed to ensure security during the by-election.

A total of 185 polling stations had been established in the constituency, including 11 in Category A, 37 in Category B and 137 in Category C.

A comprehensive traffic management plan had also been devised, with more than 65 personnel assigned duties.