Former speaker of the National Assembly and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Sardar Ayaz Sadiq reclaimed his NA membership after winning the re-election in NA-122 Lahore from where he was de-seated in August, defeating Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) Abdul Aleem Khan in a tightly fought contest.
The opposition PTI suffered another setback in Okara where its candidate for NA-144, Ashraf Sohna got his security deposit forfeited for being unable to bag the minimum number of votes. The by-poll there was won by an Independent, Riazul Haq Juj who secured a massive 81,240 votes, defeating the PML-N’s Chaudhry Arif who secured 42,050 votes.
The Election Commission had established 210 polling stations for 316,370 registered voters of NA-144 Okara. Of them, 25 polling stations were declared as sensitive. The seat was vacated after disqualification of PML-N’s Chaudhry Arif for having a fake degree.
NA-122 AND PP-147 LAHORE BY-POLLS:
Unofficial results from all 284 polling stations in NA-122 put PML-N’s Ayaz Sadiq as victorious, bagging around 75,287 votes, while PTI’s Aleem Khan came in second with around 71,258 votes.
Meanwhile, in a victory that failed to console the supporters and leaders of PTI, Shoaib Siddiqui won the provincial assembly seat from PP-147 Lahore by securing 30,864 votes while his opponent, PML-N’s Mohsin Latif bagged 28,408 votes. Latif is the nephew of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s wife, Kulsoom Nawaz.
Earlier, the polling process began in Lahore and Okara at 8am and ended at 5pm without any break. Scuffles between political activists, allegations from party leaders and other related incidents were reported from NA-122 as the polling process continued.
PML-N supporters started dancing and celebrating on roads and streets as their candidate maintained a slim margin over their rival throughout the counting process. Sounds of drums were ubiquitous in Lahore city.
A total of 17 candidates were contesting the NA-122 by-polls. Prominent among them were Sardar Ayaz Sadiq of PML-N, Abdul Aleem Khan of PTI and Barrister Mian Aamir Hassan of PPP.
The Election Commission had set up 284 polling stations in NA-122. Of them, 80 polling stations had been declared sensitive. Elaborate security arrangements were made as the entire Lahore constituency was declared Red Zone.
Returning Officer (RO) for the by-elections in NA-122 and PP-147, Zahid Iqbal said that the official results for the national and provincial assembly slots would be announced at 10am on Monday (today) in the presence of contesting candidates. No complaints of rigging were received from any polling station, Zahid Iqbal said.
“However, some complaints did come from a few places regarding the polling agents not being allowed to sit inside the polling stations. These were resolved immediately,” he added. He said that in a joint effort the army, civil administration and the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) ensured holding of transparent polls in a peaceful atmosphere.
PML-N LEADERS, SUPPORTERS REJOICE:
Talking to cheering supporters after the election victory, Hamza Shahbaz, who had led the PML-N’s campaign in NA-122, thanked Allah Almighty that their voters’ love had been vindicated and that it had been proved that the May 2013 election results were a reflection of the people’s will.
He said that that they had prevailed over their opponent, who was in fact, Imran Khan and not Aleem Khan and that the PML-N supporters’ passion had triumphed.
He reminded Imran Khan that all of his demands had been met by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, including constituting a judicial commission and then participating in by-elections, none of which was without risk. “But, after courts of the land, the court of public opinion had also ruled in their favour,” he added.
Urging Imran Khan to stop his dhaandhli (cheating) mantra and take part in the agenda of progress for the country, Hamza said that his party was going to accept this decision with humility and keep working towards the goal of prosperity for the country. He said that whoever wins or loses Pakistan must win.
Shahbaz said that their next contest would be in 2018 and that until then both PTI and PML-N should work for the welfare of the general public. He asked Imran Khan to join with them in the ongoing fight against terrorism under prime minister’s leadership and work towards the progress of the country.
Ayaz Sadiq, Khawaja Saad Rafique, Abid Sher Ali and other prominent PML-N leaders were present on the stage.
Speaking to the party workers, Sadiq said that he was humbled that the voters had chosen him again to be their representative. He thanked his supporters and workers for working tirelessly and contributing to his victory.
Sadiq was critical of Imran Khan’s “rude comments” but he said that he was looking forward to a new working relationship with the PTI.
PTI ALLEGES PRE-POLL RIGGING:
The PTI leadership on the other hand claimed that the ruling party was involved in pre-poll rigging as it had employed all government departments and state machinery for its campaign.
“We have been informed that in several instances registered voters were unable to find their names in the electoral rolls. Some people were told that their votes had been registered in other constituencies and even out of Lahore,” claimed PTI Secretary General Jehangir Tareen at a press conference at the PTI Central Secretariat.
Tareen said that despite all odds, Aleem Khan had fought a tough battle and lost by a margin of hardly four thousand votes. “The results show that Lahore is not just a PML-N bastion, PTI too has a stake in the city,” he said.
Addressing reporters, Aleem Khan accused Ayaz Sadiq of manipulating the voters list.
“Ayaz Sadiq had claimed on Sunday morning that he would win with a margin of 40,000 to 47,000 votes. I have brought it down to a couple of thousand and the day is not far when PTI would claim this constituency,” he said.
Aleem said that PTI had won both provincial seats falling under NA-122 and this was evidence of the party’s growing popularity in the provincial capital.
HASSAAN AHMED and IMRAN SHAH contributed to this report.