—PM Khan says govt provided level-playing field to all parties in by-elections
ISLAMABAD: Disappointed with the results of Oct 14 by-polls, the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Monday blamed intra-party divisions for playing a role in the party’s poor performance in some constituencies.
In a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan, the party’s top leadership was told that internal rifts were the biggest reason behind PTI’s defeat in some constituencies while other issues, including rising inflation and anti-encroachment campaigns being carried out in cities, had also impacted the voter sentiment.
According to sources, Khan told his party leaders that the federal and provincial governments had provided a level-playing field to all parties in the by-elections.
“The government did not meddle in the by-elections at any level,” he said, adding that the voter sentiment showed that there was a need to shift all focus on providing relief to the masses.
Talking to a private news channel, PM’s Special Assistant on Media Iftikhar Durrani said that despite the setback in the by-polls, PTI had secured 1,037,000 votes, the most out of all the parties.
Durrani said that PTI voters are aware of what the past governments had done to the country, adding that the government was committed to taking its economic reforms agenda forward.
The ruling party under PM Imran maintained its slim majority in the parliament after the by-elections, final results showed.
PTI won 15 seats of the total 36 on offer in polls held across the country on Sunday, according to the Election Commission of Pakistan.
The opposition Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) won an additional two seats, bringing the coalition´s total in the National Assembly to 177 out of 342.
