In the urban and rural areas of Hyderabad district, varying percentage of voter turnout and complaints of election-related irregularities remained hall mark of the polling day.
Polling remained peaceful throughout the day, except an isolated incident of violence in which a pedestrian and an activist of the Mohajir Qaumi Movement sustained bullet injuries in an exchange of fire right after the polling ended.
Complaints of election-related irregularities, such as omission of voters’ names and wrong addresses in the electoral lists were heard at several polling stations. There was no light at the polling station no 177, Holmstead Hall.
During the visit of various polling stations by this scribe, complaints were received about poor quality of ink pad, stamps, and faulty voter lists.
While the turnout of voters in the areas of Hyderabad city, Latifabad and Qasimabad remained poor, at least in morning hours, the turnout in rural areas like Hala, the native town of PPP chief Makhdoom Ameen Faheem, and Matiari remained far better.
In Matiari, Tandojam, Hala, Qasimabad, Latifabad and the city, polling began at 8am and continued uninterrupted till 5pm.
Except for areas, where polling stations were set up, the people preferred to remain indoors. The areas wore a deserted look in the morning.
Election enthusiasm among the workers seemed to be completely missing and only the polling agents or the party workers were seen at the election offices, preparing voter chits.
People appeared totally indifferent to polling.
Allegations and counter allegations of harassment by the political parties against one another continued throughout the day.
The polling began at 8am but during the first four hours, the polling staff and polling agents had to wait for voters to turn up. There were hardly few polling stations where queues of voters could be seen.
Even in the densely populated areas of Paretabad and Phuleli, the turnout was poor although it showed an increase in the later hours of the day, from 3 to 5 pm.
At polling station no 34 of Latifabad, not a single vote was polled by 2 pm at booth No.1, which had 300 voters.
Till 11.30am, voter turnout at 10 polling stations of the city and Latifabad was at 7.82 per cent, but it rose to 11.85 per cent by 1 pm. However, the turnout increased at few polling stations after 1 pm.
The turnout remained at 23 per cent at the men’s polling station-239, where 400 votes were cast by 1.55pm, out of 1677, At the women’s polling station of the Scout Headquarters in Latifabad-9.
The situation in Hala and Matiari areas was encouraging as by 9.45am, 105 votes were polled out of 943 at polling station no-1 of NA-218 (Hyderabad-I), from where PPP chief Makhdoom Amin Fahim is contesting the election.
Likewise 97 voters out of 915 cast their votes by the same the time at polling station no-5. As many as 318 out of 1410 voters had already cast their votes when polling station no-1410 was visited at 11.30 in Hala.
KHAIRPUR: Low turnout of voters marked the polling day in Khairpur district.
People were not much excited about casting their vote and no long queues were witnessed outside the polling stations. While women participated in less number, young men comprised majority of the voters.
A group of the Commonwealth election observers visited different polling stations in the district.
Many people told newsmen and the observers that they did not cast their vote as they had not received their National Identity Cards.
SANGHAR: The turnout of voters in Sanghar district was estimated between 30 and 35 per cent, while at some polling stations, where the voters of a single political party were in majority, the voting ratio seemed to be more than 50 per cent.
The army and rangers contingents were patrolling in the district headquarter.
At polling station-15, Shahdadpur, till 3pm, 900 votes were polled out of 1584. At polling station-174, Government Primary School, Naoabad, 661 out of 1475 were cast till 3.30pm.
In the villages, polling began late but in Shahdadpur and Tando Adam, the Mutahidda Qaumi Movement voters had lined up in front of the polling stations before 7am.
NAWABSHAH: Polling began with a very slow pace in Nawabshah.
According to a survey of various polling stations of the district — including Nawabshah city, Daleldero, Sakrand, Qazi Ahmed, Doulatpur and Khair Shah — approximately 18 to 22 percent voters turned to the polling stations.
It was observed that people were not interested in casting their vote even after transport facilities were provided to them by the candidates.
Over all, very low turnout was observed in Nawabshah, Sakrand, Qazi Ahmed, Doulatpur, Daur, Bandhi, Sixty Miles and Jam Saheb.
International election observer groups also visited Nawabshah and monitored the election process.
Unidentified persons snatched ballot papers of 43 leaves from a woman presiding officer at the Oxford School polling station in Budhal Shah Colony here.
Polling in Allahyar Rahu (PS-27), Karam Jamali (PS-27), Balo jo Kubo (PS-26), Lakhabad, Sakrand, Dost Ali Unnar (PS-27) and Nawa Bhora (Ps-27) remained suspended for sometime.
SHIKARPUR: The polling turnout in Shikarpur district averaged at 40 per cent.
In Shikarpur city and the rural areas of the district, some incidents of election-related clashes took place and, at some polling stations, polling was suspended and shifted to the other places.
At Qalandar Bux Gopang village, polling was suspended for four hours, following a clash between the PPP and Sindh Democratic Alliance activists. Later the polling station was shifted to Baloch Khan Gopang where voting continue till 9pm.
Similarly, at the polling station of Ali Hassan Jatoi village, polling was suspended at 12.45pm when a woman agent of PPP candidate Junaid Ahmed Soomro was reportedly constrained to leave the polling station.
The polling process was also disturbed at about 14 polling stations — including Shabbirabad, Fareed Jatoi, Nepierabad, Panhwar, Sobhdar Jatoi, Darogho Qutubuddin Jatoi, Shah Ibrahim, Pyaro Saad Khanwani, Abdul Karim Kosh and Kot Shahoo of Khanpur taluka — when clashes took place between the workers of the rival candidates, Dr Mohammad Ibrahim Jatoi and Soomro.
On the other hand, SDA candidate Imtiaz Ahmed Shaikh alleged that Agha Taimoor Khan and his workers had opened fire at his workers at Dawan Shah polling station here.
The PPP candidate from PS-10, accused the PML(Q) candidate of kidnapping his polling agents in Lakhi taluka.
The reports from Chak said that a worker of the PML(Q), Master Saleemullah Maher, was arrested on the charges of keeping and using fake ballot papers at the veterinary hospital polling station.
Two ballot boxes were forcibly taken away by the PML (Q) activists from Hazrat Hambah polling station and the police and law enforcing agencies have gone behind them.