Pakistan elections 2024: In a shocking turn of events, three-time former Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, the leader of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), faced a significant defeat against independent candidate Shahzada Gastasap in NA-15 Mansehra constituency, according to Pakistani media reports. Gastasap clinched 74,713 votes, while Nawaz managed to secure only 63,054 votes.
Notably, Nawaz is also contesting from Lahore's NA-130 constituency, where he defeated Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-backed (PTI) Yasmeen Rashid by 55,981 votes. However, the loss in Mansehra is expected to sting the PML-N supremo as Mansehra was considered to be a stronghold of the party. Official results of the Pakistan elections are expected to be announced on Friday, after some delays.
According to the results by Dawn, political parties are engaged in a neck-to-neck fight as PML-N has won a total of 11 seats so far, while Imran Khan's PTI-backed candidates have won seven seats so far. Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari's Pakistan People's Party (PPP) has won five seats. PTI claims that the party-backed candidates are leading in 154 seats, and are poised to spring a surprise in the general elections marred by rigging allegations, sporadic violence and a military-backed crackdown.
Pakistan authorities were moving at a snail's pace on Friday to announce the election results that in a surprising development showed disqualified and jailed ex-Prime Minister Khan's PTI-supported independent candidates leading the show. The interior ministry said the media and the public’s concerns about the late processing of the results have been reviewed. It attributed the delay to a “lack of communication, which was a result of preventive measures taken to ensure foolproof security”.
PML-N hopeful of winning as PTI tells Nawaz Sharif to accept
PML-N chief organiser Maryam Nawaz, after emerging victorious in Lahore's NA-159, appeared confident that her party will form the government at the Centre, and party leader Marriyum Aurangzeb echoed her remarks. On the other hand, PTI told Nawaz to accept Nawaz and said the people will reject the PML-N supremo and the 'daylight robbery'.
The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has acknowledged a "huge" voter turnout in favour of its arch-rival PTI, however, it remains hopeful that its supremo Nawaz Sharif will get a record fourth term as the country's prime minister. Nawaz was the favourite to win the election as he was being backed by the powerful Army.
So far among the major winners, former prime minister and PML-N president Shehbaz Sharif has won the NA 123 seat from Lahore with 63,953 votes, according to initial results. Similarly, Balochistan National Party leader Akhtar Mengal won the election for National Assembly constituency NA-261 Surab-cum-Kalat-cum-Mastung by securing 3,404 votes.
Pakistan's elections
Earlier, the Returning Officers allegedly stopped issuing results to the media following an 'apparent victory' of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf in most seats in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) provinces. The cellphone and internet services suspended before elections were gradually restored during the night.
In total 266 National Assembly seats were up for grabs in Thursday's election out of 336, but polling was postponed on at least one seat after a candidate was killed in a gun attack in Bajaur. Another 60 seats are reserved for women and 10 for minorities and are allotted to the winning parties based on proportional representation.
A party must win 133 seats out of 265 being contested to form the next government.
Another 593 seats of the four provincial assemblies, out of a total 749, were also open for contest but the ECP delayed polls on at least three seats, two in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and one in Punjab, after two candidates died and one was killed.
(with inputs from PTI)
