by-election for PP-52
SIALKOT
PML-N’s Hina Arshad Warraich secured a Punjab Assembly seat (PP-52) in Sialkot by a wide margin amid rigging allegations by the PTI, according to preliminary results issued by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Monday. The by-election for PP-52 (Sambrial) took place yesterday, two months after the seat had fallen vacant following the demise of PML-N MPA Arshad Javed Warraich — father of the winning candidate.
Analysts had expected a tough one-on-one contest between the ruling PML-N and the PTI-backed aspirants, whereas the PPP had also been running an aggressive campaign in Sambrial to perform better in the race.
According to Form-47 issued by the ECP today and signed by Returning Officer Muhammad Iqbal, Warraich clinched the seat by winning 78,702 votes. Warraich’s main opponent, Fakhir Nashat Ghumman, who was an independent candidate backed by the PTI, was the runner-up with 39,018 votes.
PPP’s Raheel Kamran Cheema ranked third with 6,832 ballots cast in his favour, followed by Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan’s Muhammad Shafaqat with 4,851 votes. The balloting had remained peaceful throughout yesterday, except for verbal arguments between PTI supporters and the police at some polling stations out of a total of 185.
PTI spokesperson Sheikh Waqqas Akram accused the Punjab government and the police of interfering in the by-election, alleging that its polling agents were expelled from the polling stations. The former ruling party also claimed to have “video evidence of the rigging”. —DNA
