NA 249 by-election - Another test of popularity for PTI?

[MenInG]

Looks like another test for PTI - should be hard fought.

==


LAHORE: PML-N President and Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Shahbaz Sharif released a message to residents of NA-249 amid the by-poll in the Karachi constituency today (Thursday).

The PML-N president appealed to the people of NA-249 to leave their homes and exercise their constitutional and democratic right to vote responsibly.

Shahbaz said the public can elect a competent and honest leader with their power to vote.

He also asked the citizens to take care of themselves and others around them in view of the spread of coronavirus.

Balloting for the by-election in the NA-249 constituency started at 8am and will continue till 5pm without any interval. The National Assembly seat fell vacant after Vawda resigned.

The Sindh government has announced a public holiday today (Thursday, April 29) to facilitate voters.

The Election Commission of Pakistan has deployed special staff for strict implementation of coronavirus guidelines as long as the polling process continues.

NA 249 by-election: Here's what you need to know about the constituency

There are 30 candidates in the electoral arena, including PML-N’s Miftah Ismail, PTI's Amjad Afridi, PPP'S Qadir Khan Mandokhel, Karachi’s former mayor Mustafa Kamal and MQM's Hafiz Mursaleen, besides 18 independent candidates.

There are over 339,000 registered voters in NA-249, including 201,656 male and 137,935 female voters, who are casting their votes on 276 polling stations. The ECP has declared 184 polling stations highly sensitive and 92 others sensitive.


GEO

 

[OMB]

NA-249 by-election: ECP takes strict notice of PTI lawmakers' presence in constituency


KARACHI: Taking strict notice of PTI lawmakers' presence in the NA-249 constituency during the by-poll, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has directed them to leave the area, Geo News reported on Thursday.

According to details, six PTI MPs Firdous Shamim Naqvi, Raja Azhar, Saeed Afridi, Bilal Ghaffar, Shah Nawaz Jadoon and Shahzad Awan were found to be violating the code of conduct by being present in the constituency during polling hours.

The ECP has issued their expulsion orders, directing police to expel them from the constituency.

Meanwhile, PPP raised the issue of the presence of PTI’s Saeed Afridi in the constituency by writing to the Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja, requesting him to take action against the MPA who was campaigning for his party’s candidate.

“It is obvious that PTI legislatures have made it a policy and a routine to violate election laws and their removal from the constituency is not producing any result. One goes and another enters,” PPP’s Taj Haider wrote to the CEC.

“We humbly request you to warn the party in this regard and take penal action under the law against those legislators who have violated Election Law.”

Haider also wrote to the CEC to complain about PTI lawmaker Awan's presence inside the constituency.

Polling underway
Polling for the NA-249 constituency is underway and the process is expected to continue till 5pm uninterrupted, as political heavyweights such as the PPP, the PTI and the PML-N vie for the seat in what is being termed as a close contest among the parties.

To ensure a large voter turnout, the Sindh government has declared a public holiday today (Thursday, April 29) for NA-249 constituents.

The ECP has deployed special staff for strict implementation of coronavirus guidelines as long as the polling process continues.

There are 30 candidates in the electoral arena, including PML-N’s Miftah Ismail, PTI's Amjad Afridi, PPP'S Qadir Khan Mandokhel, Karachi’s former mayor Mustafa Kamal and MQM's Hafiz Mursaleen, besides 18 independent candidates.

There are over 339,000 registered voters in NA-249, including 201,656 male and 137,935 female voters, who are casting their votes on 276 polling stations. The ECP has declared 184 polling stations highly sensitive and 92 others sensitive. The CCTV cameras have been installed at highly sensitive polling stations.

Some well-known areas in the constituency include Delhi Colony, Mujahid Colony, Baldia, and Saeedabad, while the prominent ethnic groups in this working-class neighbourhood comprise Urdu-speaking people, Pashtuns, Kashmiris, and the Seraiki-speaking lot.

ECP rejects Miftah Ismail's request to extend polling hours
Meanwhile, the provincial election commission has turned down PML-N leader Miftah Ismail's request to extend polling hours, said sources.

Sources within the election commission told Geo News that the body was unable to find any solid reason to extend polling hours beyond 5pm.

Earlier, in a letter addressed to the provincial election commission, Ismail had submitted the request to facilitate voters who are fasting in the hot weather by extending polling hours.

He said the overall working efficiency of all presiding officers and their teams has been "very slow" which was affecting the polling process.

"Concurrently, majority of voters also arrived in polling stations late afternoon due to their fasting and hot weather conditions," he wrote.

Ismail said he feared due to these factors, most voters will not be able to exercise their Constitutional right to vote for the candidate of their choice as the polling time was nearing its end.

"A large number of voters are still present at various polling stations in anticipation of casting their votes," he said.

He requested the commission to provide an opportunity to a large number of people still present in the polling stations across the constituency to cast their votes, by extending the polling time "minimum for two hours at least".

'Exercise your constitutional right to vote'
PML-N President and Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Shahbaz Sharif released a message to residents of NA-249 amid the by-poll in the Karachi constituency today.

The PML-N president appealed to the people of NA-249 to leave their homes and exercise their constitutional and democratic right to vote responsibly.

Shahbaz said the public can elect a competent and honest leader with their power to vote.

He also asked the citizens to take care of themselves and others around them in view of the spread of coronavirus.

Polling in NA-249 under way peacefully: DRO
District returning officer Syed Nadeem Haider said polling in NA-249 is under way peacefully.

He said that there were no polling agents in some places, however, there have been no complaints of delays in polling.

Voter turnout is low: Sindh election commissioner
Provincial election commissioner Ijaz Chauhan, too, visited various polling stations in the NA-249 constituency.

He said elected representatives cannot enter the constituency. Chauhan said that an MPA was found inside the constituency and was asked to leave.

Voter turnout, he said, is low so far and voters are turning up gradually. He said coronavirus SOPs are being taken care of.

PTI leading in every survey, says Naqvi
The PTI is leading in every survey related to the NA-249 constituency of Karachi, the party's leader Firdous Shamim Naqvi told Geo News earlier today.

He said the competition stays fierce until the last vote has not been counted. Speaking about Faisal Vawda, he said the former PTI MNA had improved the NA-249 constituency after it was neglected for 20 years.

About PPP, Naqvi said that the party had entered the playing field only two weeks ago. "I have heard that PPP has done a lot of work," he said.

A brief political history of NA-249
Prime Minister Imran Khan chose this constituency to contest elections for the first time in Pakistan in the year 1997.

He could only secure 2,037 votes from the area which, at that time, was named NA-184.

Since 2008 the constituency has elected a different political party to power in every general poll. In 2008, PPP's Abdul Qadir Patel won with over 56,000 votes.

Read more: Karachi's NA-249 voters divided over Faisal Vawda's performance, polls show

In 2013, MQM’s Muhammad Salman Baloch clinched victory with 39,000 votes, while in 2018, Muhammad Faisal Vawda bagged the constituency with over 35,000 votes.

Interestingly, Shehbaz Sharif, the former chief minister of Punjab, who was contesting polls for the first time in Karachi, lost to Vawda with only 723 votes.

A candidate of the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan, which has now been banned by the government, ranked third in 2018 elections, with 23,981 votes.

Why does NA-249 matter?
After the Daska by-election, NA-249 will be crucial for both the PML-N and PTI to win.

For Prime Minister Imran Khan, who was also among the 14 MNAs who won from Karachi, the general perception about PTI in Karachi is that its elected representatives have not performed well.

Just for the record Khan first contested from Burns Road in Karachi 1997, about a year after his party was launched.

Electorally, Karachi, a city of over 16 million, does not belong to any one political party, ethnicity or community anymore. NA-249 may be an important contest, but the real political battle will be in the yet to be held local body’s elections.

https://www.geo.tv/latest/347810-voting-begins-in-na-249-constituency

 

[OMB]

Polling in Karachi's NA-249 constituency underway

PML-N requests extension in polling hours; ECP asks DIGs to ensure no MPA, public office holder is in constituency

Polling for the NA-249 by-election in Karachi's district West commenced at 8 in the morning on Thursday and is to go on till 5pm.

The seat fell vacant following Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Faisal Vawda’s resignation ahead of the Senate elections.

The Sindh government has declared a public holiday in the constituency today for voters' convenience.

Interestingly, it is the first election in which all the major political parties are hoping to score a victory after making grand claims. At least two political parties have fielded their own candidates during the election campaign, focused not only on victory but also on the defeat of the opposition parties.

This by-election could undoubtedly cause a stir in the country's politics.


Since 1988, the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has won this constituency once, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) twice, while both Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and PTI have also won the seat only once.

The by-election of NA-249 has become a matter of survival for many parties.

If the PTI maintains its 2018 victory in the by-elections, then their claim of still being popular among the people will be proved right. If they lose, the PTI will suffer many losses.

Losing a seat vacated by its own party member will say much about the PTI's unpopularity, at least in Karachi.

However, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry on Thursday expressed his confidence in PTI's victory over rival parties.

"All the surveys conducted in connection with the NA249 elections in Karachi show that the PTI has the upper hand over all the parties. Inshallah, this day will be the day of the PTI," he said on his official Twitter handle.

On the other hand, in a message on PML-N's official Twitter account, party president Shehbaz Sharif appealed to the people of the constituency to leave their homes with national spirit and exercise their constitutional and democratic right to vote responsibly.

“I would like to ask the elders, brothers, sons, mothers, sisters and daughters that the vote is your power that you can use to elect that competent and honest leadership,” he added.

He urged the constituency's residents to vote for the PML-N candidate, assuring that doing so will solve all their basic problems.

“I am confident that you will make the right decision once again as in the past and will do your best to get the country and the nation out of the maelstrom of problems,” Shehbaz said.

The NA-249 election campaign is being run on the basis of language, communities and beliefs, along with the propagation of issues and ideas.

Under the security plan devised for the by-election, more than 3,000 police and Rangers personnel are said to be performing their duties in the constituency.

According to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), the number of registered voters in the constituency is 339,591, including 211,656 male voters and 137,935 female voters.

In a message, District Returning Officer Syed Nadeem Haider asked politicians of different parties to ask their MNAs/MPAs to not visit the constituency and refrain from indulging in anyone’s election campaign.

The officer warned of taking strict disciplinary action against all the violators, irrespective of their party or political affiliation.

Expulsion of MPA

Haider also asked senior superintendent of police (SSP) to expel a member of the provincial assembly from the constituency.

He pointed out that the MPA has been visiting the constituency along-with party workers as reported by the monitoring teams of the ECP and the media.

Moreover, the ECP penned letters to the DIGs West and South, asking them to expel any MPA or public office holder found inside the constituency.

PML-N requests extension in polling hours

In a letter addressed to the ECP, the PML-N requested for polling hours to be extended.

"Due to very hot day of the Holy Ramazan overall working efficiency of all the presiding officers and their team members remained very low," stated General Secretary PML-N Sindh MIftah Ismail, also the party’s candidate in NA-249.

"Majority of the voters also arrived in the polling station late afternoon due to their fasting and hot weather condition," the letter read.

"Great apprehension has been established that due to this situation majority of the voters may not be able to opportune their constitutional right of casting vote, as polling time is about to reach its closing hour.

“However, a large number of voters are still present at various polling stations in anticipation of casting their votes," added the letter.

"In the larger interest of the general public, you are kindly requested that an opportunity may kindly be provided to the public who are already present at the polling stations to cast their votes by extension in the time of polling minimum for 2 hours at least."

Candidates

While there is no clear favourite, one thing is certain: Faisal Vawda’s performance has adversely affected the PTI’s vote bank, with residents accusing him of abandoning the area.

“He offered us bottled water when we pointed out to him that our taps were running dry,” one angry local told The Express Tribune, claiming that the then minister visited the area only thrice during his tenure.

The PTI’s current candidate is Amjad Afridi, a local businessman who has one unsuccessful political campaign to his name and very little political capital. His only hope is to convert Prime Minister Imran Khan’s waning popularity into votes, which locals that The Express Tribune spoke to called ‘a slippery slope’.


Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s Miftah Ismail is a strong contender as the area includes a significant Punjabi-speaking population, while the party is also popular among Kashmiris and Seraiki speakers. But the former finance minister’s campaign missed out on a potential fillip after the party’s charismatic vice president Maryam Nawaz cancelled her visit to the constituency due to Covid-19 concerns. Ismail, despite being a prominent and successful businessman, remains a political novice, which, according to locals, would undermine his chances of success.

Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP) chief Mustafa Kamal has emerged as one of the strongest candidates - and probably the frontrunner - owing to strong canvassing and campaigning in the area. His political pedigree, including his successful stint as Karachi mayor, also plays in his favour. At corner meetings and public gatherings, as witnessed by this reporter, PSP’s events not just dwarfed those of its rival for the Urdu-speaker vote, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P), but other parties as well.

“We had provided a dedicated line that carried six million gallons of water from the Hub Reservoir to Baldia Town. Now, there are 25 hydrants on that line and 178 illegal connections,” he told The Express Tribune when asked about the water problem.

MQM-P’s Muhammad Mursaleen, meanwhile, appeared less acquainted with the area’s problems at the party’s relatively deserted campaign office.

The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) is fielding Qadir Khan Mandokhel, considered a weak candidate by residents, which they say is validated by the PPP’s efforts to have the by-election postponed.

The Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) was one of the surprise performers in the last general election, bagging the third-highest votes in this constituency. However, conflict over tickets is likely to split the vote between the party’s candidate Nazeer Kamalvi and Ahmed Bilal Qadri, the son of slain Sunni Tehreek chief Saleem Qadri, who is now running as an independent candidate. However, he remains affiliated with the Pakistan Sunni Tehreek.

Close competition

In the past, the difference in votes between some of the winning and losing candidates in this constituency has been only a few hundred or a few thousand.

Shehbaz Sharif lost NA-249 in 2018 by 723 votes. In 1993, PML-N's Ejaz Ahmed Shafi won by a margin of only 266 votes over the PPP candidate.

Moreover, In 1997, Ejaz Shafi won again and the MQM candidate came in second with a margin of 2,783 votes. The third- and fourth-place finishers had also received a sizeable number of votes.

The current by-election is also likely to be a fork in the road between several parties.

https://tribune.com.pk/story/2297379/polling-in-karachis-na-249-constituency-underway

 

[Last Monetarist]

https://www.geo.tv/latest/347810-voting-begins-in-na-249-constituency

Polling time ended at 5pm on for the hotly-contested NA-249 by-election in the city's District West and counting is underway across the 276 polling stations in the constituency.

PML-N's Miftah Ismail is leading the race, unofficial results from 52 of 276 polling stations show.

The polling process was conducted largely peacefully with no untoward incident taking place, according to Geo News correspondents reporting from the field.

Voter turnout, despite strict security arrangements, was reported to be low, perhaps due to Ramadan and the scorching heat.

According to Geo News correspondent Qaseem Saeed, one area saw a 10% voter turnout, whereas Talha Hashmi reported it to be 10-12% at some polling stations.

Kashif Mushtaq, however, reported it to be as low as 2% at others.

Counting is now underway in polling stations where no more voters are queued up waiting for their turn to cast their ballots.

Earlier, taking strict notice of PTI lawmakers' presence in the NA-249 constituency during the by-poll, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) directed them to leave.

According to details, six PTI MPs Firdous Shamim Naqvi, Raja Azhar, Saeed Afridi, Bilal Ghaffar, Shah Nawaz Jadoon and Shahzad Awan were found to be violating the code of conduct by being present in the constituency during polling hours.

The ECP has issued their expulsion orders, directing police to expel them from the constituency.

Read more: PTI leading every survey in Karachi's NA-249: Firdous Shamim Naqvi

Meanwhile, PPP raised the issue of the presence of PTI’s Saeed Afridi in the constituency by writing to the Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja, requesting him to take action against the MPA who was campaigning for his party’s candidate.

“It is obvious that PTI legislatures have made it a policy and a routine to violate election laws and their removal from the constituency is not producing any result. One goes and another enters,” PPP’s Taj Haider wrote to the CEC.

“We humbly request you to warn the party in this regard and take penal action under the law against those legislators who have violated Election Law.”

Haider also wrote to the CEC to complain about PTI lawmaker Awan's presence inside the constituency.

To ensure a large voter turnout, the Sindh government declared a public holiday today (Thursday, April 29) for NA-249 constituents.

The ECP deployed special staff for strict implementation of coronavirus guidelines during the polling process.

There are 30 candidates in the electoral arena, including PML-N’s Miftah Ismail, PTI's Amjad Afridi, PPP'S Qadir Khan Mandokhel, Karachi’s former mayor Mustafa Kamal and MQM's Hafiz Mursaleen, besides 18 independent candidates.

There are over 339,000 registered voters in NA-249, including 201,656 male and 137,935 female voters, who are casting their votes on 276 polling stations. The ECP has declared 184 polling stations highly sensitive and 92 others sensitive. The CCTV cameras have been installed at highly sensitive polling stations.

Some well-known areas in the constituency include Delhi Colony, Mujahid Colony, Baldia, and Saeedabad, while the prominent ethnic groups in this working-class neighbourhood comprise Urdu-speaking people, Pashtuns, Kashmiris, and the Seraiki-speaking lot.

Meanwhile, the provincial election commission has turned down PML-N leader Miftah Ismail's request to extend polling hours, said sources.

Sources within the election commission told Geo News that the body was unable to find any solid reason to extend polling hours beyond 5pm.

In a letter addressed to the provincial election commission, Ismail had submitted the request to facilitate voters who are fasting in the hot weather by extending polling hours.

He said the overall working efficiency of all presiding officers and their teams has been "very slow" which was affecting the polling process.

"Concurrently, majority of voters also arrived in polling stations late afternoon due to their fasting and hot weather conditions," he wrote.

Ismail said he feared due to these factors, most voters will not be able to exercise their Constitutional right to vote for the candidate of their choice as the polling time was nearing its end.

"A large number of voters are still present at various polling stations in anticipation of casting their votes," he said.

He requested the commission to provide an opportunity to a large number of people still present in the polling stations across the constituency to cast their votes, by extending the polling time "minimum for two hours at least".

PML-N President and Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Shahbaz Sharif released a message to residents of NA-249 amid the by-poll in the Karachi constituency today.

The PML-N president appealed to the people of NA-249 to leave their homes and exercise their constitutional and democratic right to vote responsibly.

Shahbaz said the public can elect a competent and honest leader with their power to vote.

He also asked the citizens to take care of themselves and others around them in view of the spread of coronavirus.

Earlier in the day, District returning officer Syed Nadeem Haider said polling in NA-249 is under way peacefully.

He said that there were no polling agents in some places, however, there have been no complaints of delays in polling.

Provincial election commissioner Ijaz Chauhan, too, visited various polling stations in the NA-249 constituency.

He said elected representatives cannot enter the constituency. Chauhan said that an MPA was found inside the constituency and was asked to leave.

Voter turnout, he said, is low so far and voters are turning up gradually. He said coronavirus SOPs are being taken care of.

The PTI is leading in every survey related to the NA-249 constituency of Karachi, the party's leader Firdous Shamim Naqvi told Geo News earlier today.

He said the competition stays fierce until the last vote has not been counted. Speaking about Faisal Vawda, he said the former PTI MNA had improved the NA-249 constituency after it was neglected for 20 years.

About PPP, Naqvi said that the party had entered the playing field only two weeks ago. "I have heard that PPP has done a lot of work," he said.

Prime Minister Imran Khan chose this constituency to contest elections for the first time in Pakistan in the year 1997.

He could only secure 2,037 votes from the area which, at that time, was named NA-184.

Since 2008 the constituency has elected a different political party to power in every general poll. In 2008, PPP's Abdul Qadir Patel won with over 56,000 votes.

In 2013, MQM’s Muhammad Salman Baloch clinched victory with 39,000 votes, while in 2018, Muhammad Faisal Vawda bagged the constituency with over 35,000 votes.

Interestingly, Shehbaz Sharif, the former chief minister of Punjab, who was contesting polls for the first time in Karachi, lost to Vawda with only 723 votes.

A candidate of the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan, which has now been banned by the government, ranked third in 2018 elections, with 23,981 votes.

After the Daska by-election, NA-249 will be crucial for both the PML-N and PTI to win.

For Prime Minister Imran Khan, who was also among the 14 MNAs who won from Karachi, the general perception about PTI in Karachi is that its elected representatives have not performed well.

Just for the record Khan first contested from Burns Road in Karachi 1997, about a year after his party was launched.

Electorally, Karachi, a city of over 16 million, does not belong to any one political party, ethnicity or community anymore. NA-249 may be an important contest, but the real political battle will be in the yet to be held local body’s elections.

 

[ChTab]

NA-249 by-election: Close contest between PPP, PML-N early counting shows

KARACHI: Counting is underway in the closely-watched NA-249 by-election which was held today in the city's District West, with early counting showing a close contest between the PML-N and PPP.

PPP's Abdul Qadir Mandokhel is leading the race with PML-N's Miftah Ismail close behind, unofficial results from 103 of the total 276 polling stations show.

https://www.geo.tv/latest/347810-voting-begins-in-na-249-constituency

 

[srh]

PTI is performing shockingly bad on a seat they won last time. They are way behind PML-N, PPP and TLP at #4 and just ahead of PSP.

 

[Minnowbasher]

Disgusting if PPP wins. The problems in Karachi directly come from PPP - they are the ones in power in Sindh.

 

[Minnowbasher]

This election proves that unless things drastically change PTI is finished. Ironically it was Imran Khan himself who said after winning the 2018 election that PTI must either perform or end up like ANP. The latter seems to be taking place already.

 

[Free Hit]

Thousands have voted for a terrorist organisation!

TLP as always being competitive amongst seasonal parties, even after being cornered from all.

 

[srh]

Imran Khan has back tracked on so many of his promises how can people trust him now?

 

[Mamoon]

Imran/PTI are done and dusted. They have lost the faith of the public as a result of the unprecedented incompetence that they have shown over the last 3 years.

The general consensus among the public is that this is by far the worst government that the country has ever had, and the criticism is strong because of the self-righteous nature of Imran/PTI and how much hype they created.

The expectations were sky high and they could not deliver half of those expectations.

The public is no longer interested in all the rona dhona over the previous governments and the corruption, chor, daku, mafia narrative and all the excuses and justifications that PTI give for their failures.

They are not interested in all the graphs, charts and propaganda that PTI provides and sells the narrative that they are on the right track and know what they are doing.

They have been fed enough lies over the last 3 years and will not fall for the dummy anymore.

The instability and chaotic administration also does not give the public any confidence. You cannot convince the masses that the economy is on the right track and that you know what you are doing when you have gone through 4-5 different finance ministers in 3 years.

You don’t chop and change your finance minister every 6 months when the economy is progressing in the right direction.

This government is done. Unless a miracle happens over the next 2 years, PTI will not win the upcoming election. However, whether or not they remain in federal power depends on the establishment who have rigged every single election in history.

If they respect the votes of the public and do not interfere for once, PTI will certainly flop in the next election.

Imran/PTI still have strong support overseas because they do not have stakes in the country and do not bear the brunt of their incompetence.

Moreover, since they do not live in Pakistan, they are out of touch with ground realities and easily fall for PTI’s social media propaganda.

Nevertheless, they don’t really matter anyway. They are not allowed to vote and most of them don’t even bother to come to Pakistan and vote during elections regardless of all the armchair support that they provide.

 

[Technics 1210]

Mamoon is correct, overseas Pakistanis are not allowed to vote; yet Mamoon voted, for IK.

If anyone is unaware of the ground realities, its the likes of him.

 

[har9900]

I am sensing sarcasm from your comment? There is nothing wrong in opposing the ruling government as long as your reasons are valid.

Mamoon is correct, overseas Pakistanis are not allowed to vote; yet Mamoon voted, for IK.

If anyone is unaware of the ground realities, its the likes of him.

 

[Technics 1210]

I am sensing sarcasm from your comment? There is nothing wrong in opposing the ruling government as long as your reasons are valid.

You are correct too. Nothing wrong in opposing the ruling government, just that, he voted for IK, and opposed his government the day IK won the election.

 

[srh]

You are correct too. Nothing wrong in opposing the ruling government, just that, he voted for IK, and opposed his government the day IK won the election.

Imran Khan's u-turns have turned off lot of his supporters. Check this out:

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="ur" dir="rtl">عمران خان میں چاروں ڈکٹیٹروں کی"صفات" پائی جاتی ہیں۔ ایوب کی رعونت، یحییٰ کی رنگین مزاجی، ضیا کی منافقت، مشرف کی جعلی روشن خیالی۔ اوپر سے جھوٹ بولنے اور اپنی ہر بات سے مکر جانے کی اضافی خوبیاں بھی موجود ہیں۔</p>— Umer Shareef (@UmerShareefpk) <a href="https://twitter.com/UmerShareefpk/status/1387353420185677824?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 28, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[Bigboii]

Imran Khan's u-turns have turned off lot of his supporters. Check this out:

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="ur" dir="rtl">عمران خان میں چاروں ڈکٹیٹروں کی"صفات" پائی جاتی ہیں۔ ایوب کی رعونت، یحییٰ کی رنگین مزاجی، ضیا کی منافقت، مشرف کی جعلی روشن خیالی۔ اوپر سے جھوٹ بولنے اور اپنی ہر بات سے مکر جانے کی اضافی خوبیاں بھی موجود ہیں۔</p>— Umer Shareef (@UmerShareefpk) <a href="https://twitter.com/UmerShareefpk/status/1387353420185677824?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 28, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

I don't think it's his real account

First no. Blue tick second it says

Unofficial and Parody

 

[saeedhk]

The PTI is suffering a humiliating defeat in the Karachi election. It is at number four, behind the TLP. This seat was occupied by PTI’s Vawda who recently resigned.

PTI has lost public support. Inflation has buried this political party and expect them to lose all of their seats if the next elections are fair.

 

[PetroDollars]

since when did pmln become so popular in karachi

 

[Bigboii]

since when did pmln become so popular in karachi

Punjabi area of Karachi

 

[moghul]

In a way its good for the PTI, they needed this kind of shock, but if anyone knows IK, every defeat makes him stronger. There is a enough time till next election and he PTI will make a strong come back.

 

[El Generico]

Imran Khan's u-turns have turned off lot of his supporters. Check this out:

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="ur" dir="rtl">عمران خان میں چاروں ڈکٹیٹروں کی"صفات" پائی جاتی ہیں۔ ایوب کی رعونت، یحییٰ کی رنگین مزاجی، ضیا کی منافقت، مشرف کی جعلی روشن خیالی۔ اوپر سے جھوٹ بولنے اور اپنی ہر بات سے مکر جانے کی اضافی خوبیاں بھی موجود ہیں۔</p>— Umer Shareef (@UmerShareefpk) <a href="https://twitter.com/UmerShareefpk/status/1387353420185677824?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 28, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

The account bio literally says unofficial and parody.

 

[Bigboii]

PTI is going to get routed out of office this GE

ANP 2.0

 

[Bi_Jamalo]

In a way its good for the PTI, they needed this kind of shock, but if anyone knows IK, every defeat makes him stronger. There is a enough time till next election and he PTI will make a strong come back.

Seriously?

Why do you think so? And is there any evidence that Imran khan is stronger than before?

 

[MenInG]

LAHORE: PML-N vice president Maryam Nawaz on Friday alleged the NA-249 by-election was stolen from the party after unofficial results showed PPP's Qadir Khan Mandokhail winning the election by a margin of just 683 votes.

The unofficial election results were announced after 11 hours while the voter turn out was measured at 21.64%.

In a statement on Twitter, Maryam said the election was stolen from PML-N by only a few hundred votes.

"ECP must withhold the results of one of the most disputed & controversial elections. Even if it doesn’t, this victory will be temporary and will Insha’Allah come back to PML-N soon."

She added that the "vote is getting respect and will continue to receive it".

Later, PML-N leader and former PM Nawaz Sharif's spokesperson, Mohammad Zubair said the party would challenge the election results and added that the results of 80 polling stations had been altered.

"We have requested the Election Commission of Pakistan in this regard," he said.

PPP wins NA-249 by-poll

PPP's Abdul Qadir Mandokhel bagged 16,156 votes to win the seat, followed by PML-N's Miftah Ismail who secured 15,473, unofficial results from polling stations showed. While Nazir Ahmed of outlawed TLP trailed on the third position by receiving 11,125 votes.

PSP's Mustafa Kamal could acquire only 9,227 votes, followed by PTI's Amjad Afridi with 8,922 votes and MQM-P's Muhammed Mursaleen with 7,511 votes.

Both parties had claimed victory for their candidates mid-way into counting, capturing the attention of audiences awaiting results.

The PML-N pulled no punches in blaming the PPP for attempting to rig the result, saying they would not accept the result without challenging the Election Commission.

After the final count was announced, the PML-N's Maryam Nawaz said the election had been "stolen" from her party.

"The Election Commission should have withheld the results of this controversial election," she said.

"Even if it doesn't withhold the result, this win will be temporary. This seat will return to PML-N soon," Maryam claimed.

Meanwhile, the ECP assured that all complaints will be heard in light of the law and if any evidence of irregularity is found, strict action will be taken.

The remaining prominent candidates of the 30 total contesting were the banned TLP's Nazeer Ahmed, who for the most part maintained third place, followed by PTI candidate Amjad Iqbal Afridi, former Karachi mayor and PSP candidate Mustafa Kamal, and MQM-P candidate Hafiz Muhammad Mursaleen.

GEO

 

[Mamoon]

Apart from the backing of the establishment, the support and trust of the common man was Imran and PTI’s biggest strength. They have lost the latter.

 

[mazkhan]

Beginning of the end .

 

[the Great Khan]

Apart from the backing of the establishment, the support and trust of the common man was Imran and PTI’s biggest strength. They have lost the latter.

so you should be happy. Your friends in the PPP and PMLN will return. I sincerely hope you support them on PP if or when that happens. I expect to hear about their amazing achievements from you on a regular basis.

 

[the Great Khan]

PTI is going to get routed out of office this GE

ANP 2.0

and replaced with what? its as if some of you just want to see a tamasha. Peoples lives are at stake. If they go I predict it will be Syria 2.0 in about five years..

 

[Zeshan547]

and replaced with what? its as if some of you just want to see a tamasha. Peoples lives are at stake. If they go I predict it will be Syria 2.0 in about five years..

Syria or not but general Pakistani's life will be better of, that i can assure you. And there will be some real work not just hot air.

 

[Mamoon]

so you should be happy. Your friends in the PPP and PMLN will return. I sincerely hope you support them on PP if or when that happens. I expect to hear about their amazing achievements from you on a regular basis.

They don’t need to make amazing achievements to prove to be an improvement over the most incompetent and clueless government in Pakistan history.

Both the previous two terms of PPP and PMLN were better than this.

 

[Manunited18]

Syria or not but general Pakistani's life will be better of, that i can assure you. And there will be some real work not just hot air.

Lives better with corruption, haraam, if this is what the common man want in pakistan then God help the prosperity of Pakistan in the future.

 

[Mamoon]

Lives better with corruption, haraam, if this is what the common man want in pakistan then God help the prosperity of Pakistan in the future.

PTI government is full of corruption as well. Besides, the common man doesn’t care about corruption when he is worse-off under PTI rule compared to PMLN/PPP.

 

[Manunited18]

PTI government is full of corruption as well. Besides, the common man doesn’t care about corruption when he is worse-off under PTI rule compared to PMLN/PPP.

Decades of corruption from PMLN/PPP goes under the carpet, yet the PTI who have been hindered with a once in a life time pandemic, the Mafia showing their true face , and here's you playing it up as a level playing field. Haraam is instilled with the majority of the nation, who are willing to compromise honesty with corruption and haraam, which suites your narrative.

 

[Vegitto1]

Surely PTI supporters, being more educated and rational, decided to stay safe at home due to COVID. Why vote in a by-election when it won’t affect PTIs position in Parliament.

 

[Mamoon]

Decades of corruption from PMLN/PPP goes under the carpet, yet the PTI who have been hindered with a once in a life time pandemic, the Mafia showing their true face , and here's you playing it up as a level playing field. Haraam is instilled with the majority of the nation, who are willing to compromise honesty with corruption and haraam, which suites your narrative.

No one buys this pandemic excuse. PTI are trying hard to make it an excuse but everyone can see that they were on the wrong track long before the pandemic hit. If there was no pandemic, PTI would not have performed any miracles.

The nation is not interested in the corruption narrative anymore. They have had enough of PTI’s rona dhona.

They can see that Imran and PTI are clueless and do not have what it takes to steer the country into the right direction.

PTI and Imran’s goose is cooked. They are finished.

 

[Savak]

I don't get a chance to post here these days very often because of how much I am drowning in work because of tax season as an accountant. But I find it very apt to see how the bulk of the forum just rolls over to Mamoons non stop drivel, very reminiscent of how our nation rolls over to the PPP and PML N every time when they are in power "Jamhooriyat aur system ko chalne doh" and when they are out of power "Nahel hakoomat corrupt hakoomat mulk ke liye ziyada khatarnak hai"

I can only say apart from the Pakistani soldiers in the army, the rest of the people of the country who talk about patriotism, love of the motherland and nation are just all talk and nothing else. The common man has no real interest or regard for the country or the direction it takes because no nation keeps on making the same mistake again and again and expects different results.

Every country has had a violent revolution at some point where the masses have revolted against a corrupt system, rulers ie Iran, Philippines, Egypt etc but Pakistani public is least concerned or bothered and there is an obvious reason ie the vast majority of people don't really care

 

[Bigboii]

I don't get a chance to post here these days very often because of how much I am drowning in work because of tax season as an accountant. But I find it very apt to see how the bulk of the forum just rolls over to Mamoons non stop drivel, very reminiscent of how our nation rolls over to the PPP and PML N every time when they are in power "Jamhooriyat aur system ko chalne doh" and when they are out of power "Nahel hakoomat corrupt hakoomat mulk ke liye ziyada khatarnak hai"

I can only say apart from the Pakistani soldiers in the army, the rest of the people of the country who talk about patriotism, love of the motherland and nation are just all talk and nothing else. The common man has no real interest or regard for the country or the direction it takes because no nation keeps on making the same mistake again and again and expects different results.

Every country has had a violent revolution at some point where the masses have revolted against a corrupt system, rulers ie Iran, Philippines, Egypt etc but Pakistani public is least concerned or bothered and there is an obvious reason ie the vast majority of people don't really care

And what happened to Iran, Egypt
Were they better off before or after the revolution?

 

[Bigboii]

Lives better with corruption, haraam, if this is what the common man want in pakistan then God help the prosperity of Pakistan in the future.

That's the kind of things people with privilege sitting in west say without understanding the situation of the country they're talking about

Thier story
Corruption is bad (even though PTI also had it's fair share of scandals but we don't talk about it...), I am morally superior to Pakistanis in every way

Because I am not living under tham so no consequences of their bad governance but I can use tham and my supporting of PTI to point cheap moral superiority points over Pakistani people

Now I love [MENTION=131701]Mamoon[/MENTION] 's rhetoric against some sections of OP, if this is the shtick they pull I say fight fire with fire...

 

[Mamoon]

I don't get a chance to post here these days very often because of how much I am drowning in work because of tax season as an accountant. But I find it very apt to see how the bulk of the forum just rolls over to Mamoons non stop drivel, very reminiscent of how our nation rolls over to the PPP and PML N every time when they are in power "Jamhooriyat aur system ko chalne doh" and when they are out of power "Nahel hakoomat corrupt hakoomat mulk ke liye ziyada khatarnak hai"

I can only say apart from the Pakistani soldiers in the army, the rest of the people of the country who talk about patriotism, love of the motherland and nation are just all talk and nothing else. The common man has no real interest or regard for the country or the direction it takes because no nation keeps on making the same mistake again and again and expects different results.

Every country has had a violent revolution at some point where the masses have revolted against a corrupt system, rulers ie Iran, Philippines, Egypt etc but Pakistani public is least concerned or bothered and there is an obvious reason ie the vast majority of people don't really care

At the end of the day, people look after their own interests. Overseas Pakistanis like yourself are also looking after your own interests - you can show fake love and concern for Pakistan over the Internet, but you have chosen to live in Canada because earning in CAD and carrying a Canadian passport serves your interests.

Prior to 2018, overseas PTI supporters made this lame excuse that they are not willing to return to Pakistan as long as it is ruled by the corrupt. However, they have not shown any intent of coming back to Pakistan even after Imran became the PM.

They can praise him all they want, but deep down, they know that Imran does not have what it takes to build a country that they would want their children to grow up in, and that is why they are serving their interests by continuing to reside above.

The common does not care about what might happen 10-15 years down the line when he is struggling to make ends meet today. Good luck convincing the people who cannot even buy sugar in Ramzaan that Imran will make Pakistan an Asian Tiger in the future.

Besides, the public has already seen that Imran and his government are clueless. They lie and do propaganda all day long but they fail to achieve anything practical. They are only good for making castles in the air and giving glad tidings for the future which they do not have the capacity to fulfill.

They talk about improving the economy but they change the finance minister every 6 months because of poor performance, and the poor man has suffered due to the unprecedented inflation like never before.

This government has no vision, no long-term planning. They are simply making things up and coming up with haphazard decisions on the go.

There is no reason for the common man to show faith in PTI after their flop show over the last 3 years.

 

[MenInG]

After a long night of waiting, the PPP's Qadir Khan Mandokhail emerged victorious in the NA-249 by-election in Karachi after securing 16,156 votes, according to provisional results released early on Friday.

PML-N's Miftah Ismail came in second with 15,473 votes, followed by the candidate from the recently banned Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), Mufti Nazeer Ahmed Kamalvi, who secured 11,125 votes, unofficial results showed.

Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP) chairman Syed Mustafa Kamal was at fourth place with 9,227 votes, followed by PTI's Amjad Afridi with 8,922 votes.

NA-249, Karachi West II, was created in 2018 by amalgamating areas that previously fell in two NA constituencies (NA-239 and NA-240) during three general elections held from 2002 to 2013. The seat had fallen vacant after PTI's Faisal Vawda resigned over his dual nationality controversy and became a senator.

Reacting to the news, PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari simply said: "Thank you Karachi #NA249."

Several hours later, he congratulated the party on the "historic win".

PML-N, PTI cry foul
Meanwhile, the PML-N and the PTI have rejected the results of the by-election.

Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said that the PPP's conduct over a single seat has highlighted the need for electoral reforms. "Once again I urge the opposition to consider Prime Minister Imran Khan's suggestion. The voting percentage shows that the people are losing faith in the process."

Federal Minister for Shipping and Maritime Affairs Ali Haider Zaidi claimed it was "obvious the crooked PPP and the provincial election commission were hand in glove in this mess!"

PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz, who was active on Twitter all through the night, claimed that the election was stolen by "only a few hundred votes".

"The election commission must withhold the results of one of the most disputed & controversial elections. Even if it doesn’t, this victory will be temporary and will come back to the PML-N soon."

She also thanked the people of the constituency for "voting for Nawaz Sharif and the party and electing Miftah Ismail". "This is a very important victory for all of us," she said, adding that those who stole the people's votes will soon be held accountable.

"Congratulations ⁦@MiftahIsmail⁩ Allah has blessed you with a glorious victory & it will come to you soon," she said.

She questioned how counting of ballots could continue late into the night when voter turnout was barely 15-18 per cent. "Was it foggy here too which caused election staff to get delayed? Do they think we are fools?" she asked in a reference to the controversy surrounding the NA-75 Daska by-poll.

"In 2018, the election was stolen from the PML-N by engineering a win for the PTI which today is at a hopeless number five, its real position.

"The PPP in 2018 was a distant number six with 7,236 votes at 5.63pc of total vote cast at 39.58pc turnout. The PML-N will not allow a repeat of 2018 forgery. NO WAY," she said.

By-election held amid tense atmosphere
Though there was plenty of hype around the NA-249 by-election, there was not much enthusiasm at most polling camps as polling started in the constituency on Thursday.

According to media reports, voter turnout remained disappointingly for a host of reasons, ranging from fasting and extremely hot weather to Covid-19 pandemic.

Polling was held amid tight security under the supervision of 2,800 policemen and 1,100 Rangers personnel while shooters were also deployed around sensitive polling stations.

The polling took place peacefully as no untoward incident was reported from any area. However, at some places, tension was reported as workers of rival parties exchanged heated arguments with one another, officials said.

Witnesses said that tension and chaos was reported at polling stations 142 and 143 in Saeedabad, where workers of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan and the Pak Sarzameen Party clashed.

"The situation was very tense and contesting parties were very charged but police and other law enforcement agencies (LEAs) managed to keep the situation cool," said Karachi police chief Ghulam Nabi Memon.

He added, "We tried to implement a zero-tolerance policy especially for display or use of force."

Witnesses said that tension and chaos were reported at polling stations 142 and 143 in Saeedabad where workers of MQM-P and PSP clashed.

LEAs told to expel PTI leaders
In two separate letters, District Returning officer Syed Nadeem Haider directed law enforcement agencies to expel PTI's Firdous Shamim Naqvi and Bilal Ghaffar from the constituency till the culmination of the polling process.

"The supra member of the provincial assembly is visiting the constituency, along with workers, and creating inconvenience for voters," the letters said.

"Further, it may also be ensured that no any sitting MNAs/MPAs/senators/ministers and other public office bearers from any group or party may not be allowed to visit area falling under the territorial jurisdiction of NA-249 Karachi where the poll process is being held," they said.

In addition, PPP Central Election Cell In charge Taj Haider wrote to the chief election commissioner, claiming that around 50 voters were not being allowed to cast their ballots at the Polling Station A-1 School.

"This is a combined polling station. However, male voters are not being allowed. You are requested to kindly take notice and do the needful under the law," he said in the letter.

PTI candidate Afridi claimed that there had been 'police-gardi' in the area, regretting that the ECP was not taking notice.

Afridi said the PTI received complaints at different polling stations that their voters were being prevented from casting votes. "Police worked as representative of the PPP's candidate in the constituency," he claimed, adding that the police were allegedly harassing voters.

'PTI ahead in all polls'
As voting began on Thursday, Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said that all surveys had shown the PTI to be ahead of all other parties in the Karachi by-poll, adding that it would be the PTI's day.

In a statement, Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif appealed to the people of the constituency to step out of their homes and exercise their "constitutional and democratic" right to vote.

He said that by exercising their right to vote, citizens could elect competent representatives that would fulfill the promises made to the people.

He assured those that cast their votes for Nawaz Sharif, Miftah Ismail or the PML-N that their basic issues would be resolved.

"I am confident that you will make the right decision, as you did in the past, and will play your part in helping to deal with the myriad of problems plaguing the country," he said. He also urged caution in light of the current coronavirus situation, and told voters to wear a face mask.

https://www.dawn.com/news/1621019/ppp-emerges-victorious-in-na-249-karachi-by-poll

 

[MenInG]

Once again threads being hijacked to discuss stuff which is irrelevant

Stick to the topic and no need to discuss overseas Pakistanis etc

 

[Kaddy]

TLP at 3?

I thought they were banned.

 

[Free Hit]

TLP at 3?

I thought they were banned.

Banned and cornering is just a tactic to keep TLP as low key as possible.

Cant ban the support however.

 

[natkhat-shahzada]

TLP at 3?

I thought they were banned.

Election Commission of Pakistan have not banned them as yet.

 

[natkhat-shahzada]

Surely PTI supporters, being more educated and rational, decided to stay safe at home due to COVID. Why vote in a by-election when it won’t affect PTIs position in Parliament.

PTI supporters are educated and rational so they did not come out to vote but their leaders are not logical & rational hence they decided to contest the elections. Is this what you are trying to convey?

 

[natkhat-shahzada]

Both strong anti-PTI parties have got a large chunk of the casted votes. This raises a lot of questions at PTI's end. If they cannot read the writing on the wall then they will face similar fate in GE 2023. It can be a good wakeup call for them if they accept their mistakes, stay quiet and just focus on the delivery in the next 2 years. It will do a lot good to them and this country.

 

[natkhat-shahzada]

As far as PTI overturning the decades of looting is considered, no one would have questioned had IK made such tall claims. IK has gone the complete opposite of what he said before the elections & it is something he takes prides at. I think I do not need to go into detail about this as it has been pointed out many times. But I am trying to say that IK acts as holier than thou but in reality he is doing no different than what previous governments did. And personally, I am fine with it. He can do whatever he wishes to but for me, he needs to stay quiet and focus on the job which is the problem. He speaks too much and delivers nothing in comparison to that. People had hopes and expectations because of his tall claims & as soon they realized that he is no different, he is losing people's respect.

Secondly, most of his cabinet members including the crucial financial ministers were part of the so-called looting era. And the most interesting part is that these financial ministers who served under Zardari are preferred over Asad Umar who was considered to be the problem solver of all economic issue of the country.

So, its about time that this government start focusing on the delivery rather than harping on what previous government did.

 

[Mamoon]

Both strong anti-PTI parties have got a large chunk of the casted votes. This raises a lot of questions at PTI's end. If they cannot read the writing on the wall then they will face similar fate in GE 2023. It can be a good wakeup call for them if they accept their mistakes, stay quiet and just focus on the delivery in the next 2 years. It will do a lot good to them and this country.

The problem is they, led by their supreme leader, cannot stay quiet and focus on performance which is why they always end up with their foot in their mouth.

PTI should have focused on its own performance after taking charge of KP in 2013 and should have done the same at the federal level in 2018.

However, over the last 8 years, they have produced a circus show with non-stop propaganda and accusations which meant that when their time came, they weren’t prepared to deliver.

I think the damage has already been done even if they mend their ways in the last 2 years. The public had sky high expectations and they have come to the realization that Imran and his government can only talk.

 

[MenInG]

Looks like no honour amongst thieves!

===


As the election commission on Friday declared the PPP victorious in the NA-249 Karachi by-poll, its chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said one arrow -- his party's election symbol -- had hunted down several targets including a lion.

In response, PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz, rejected the results, saying it was not easy to hunt down a lion, which is the election symbol of her party.

The ruling PTI, whose lawmaker Faisal Vawda had vacated the seat in the wake of his election to the Senate, also said it would challenge the results.

According to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), PPP candidate Qadir Khan Mandokhel secured 16,156 votes against 15,473 bagged by PML-N's Miftah Ismail.

Surprisingly, the now proscribed Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) stood third as its candidate Allama Nazir Ahmed secured 11,125 votes.

The results further stated that the Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP) candidate Mustafa Kamal bagged 9,227 votes.

The PTI, which had won the seat in the last general elections, came fifth in the race.

Amjad Afridi could manage only 8,922 votes. The seat was last held by the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) candidate Muhammad Mursaleen, who now received 7,511 votes.

The results also stated that the voter turnout remained 21.61% in the constituency and the total votes cast were 73,471 out of 339,591 votes registered in the area.

Bilawal, while addressing a news conference in Karachi, said his party had defeated the PTI in every field.

“The people of Karachi have rejected the PTI government and we have scored a historic victory in NA-249,” he added.

“The people stand with the opposition and disapprove of the ‘selected' government.”

Replying to a question on PML-N's allegations of rigging, the PPP chairman said that “our friends should learn to make peace with the results”.

“If someone is making allegations, prove them. Maryam Nawaz's statement is irresponsible,” he added.

“Instead of [Prime Minister] Imran Khan and the establishment, the PML-N likes to compete with the PPP.”

Bilawal also the PML-N to bring forward evidence to back its claims if it could or concede defeat.

“There was a lot of noise in the Daska election. Was there any firing here [in Karachi]? Was anyone abducted? No one can prove that the PPP has committed any wrongdoing.”

The PPP chairman said go through the history and see which party had committed the most rigging.

“Which party was originally selected? Now it will give us a lecture?” he added

Bilawal described the PML-s reaction to its defeat as “childish”, which would be against its own interests.

“We hunted many birds with one arrow, including a bat, a kite, a dolphin, mullahs and a tiger.”

Bilawal said his party’s move on the opposition alliance -- the Pakistan Democratic Movement -- was based on the decision made by its central executive committee.

“There are some friends in the opposition alliance who do not want to remove Imran Khan and [Punjab CM] Usman Bazdar. So what can we do?”

Bilawal also demanded the resignation of President Arif Alvi and Law Minister Dr Farogh Naseem for filing a false reference against Justice Qazi Faez Isa.

“The entire cabinet of the prime minister is involved in this. There should be an investigation into the conspiracy against Justice Isa.”

The PPP chairman further said former Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) director general Bashir Memon's statement must be viewed with suspicion.

“If any illegal order was being given to him [Memon], he should have come on TV,” he added.

“He [Memon] should be tried on contempt charges as instead of obeying court order, he went after the PPP.”

Separately, PML-N leader Maryam Nawaz took to Twitter to ask the ECP to withhold the results of the disputed election in Karachi as “it was stolen”.

“The PML-N will only accept defeat when it is actually defeated,” she added.

“Hunting a lion is not that easy. The story of the tactics you used to defeat the lion is about to come out.”

She further wrote that the PML-N would continue its struggle for the rights of its people and the residents of NA-249.

In another development, Khurram Sher Zaman, a PTI MPA from Karachi, announced challenging the ECP results for the NA-248 election.

“The ECP failed to hold free and transparent election [in NA-249],” he said while addressing a news conference at the Insaf House in Karachi.

“We had asked the election commission not to hold the election during Ramazan as the turnout would be low because of the heat and female voters would not be able to cast their ballots,” he added.

“We reject the results and challenge them.”

The Sindh Assembly MPA said his party holds the ECP responsible for the surge in coronavirus cases in the province.

“All political parties in Sindh had requested the election commission to postpone the date of polling,” he added.

The MPA maintained that the PTI was winning till the night of April 28.

“When the election was held on the 29th, people were rushing to PTI camps,” he claimed.

Khurram further claimed that former MNA Faisal Vawda had spent Rs350 million on development work in the constituency.

“Three days ago, the PPP was nowhere in the surveys. [PML-N's] Miftah Ismail did not come even return to the constituency after listening to the residents.”

Taking to Twitter, Federal Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said the PPP had held the whole system hostage for the sake of one seat, referring to the NA-249 by-election.

He urged the opposition parties to consider PM Imran's proposals for electoral reforms.

“The by-election in Karachi has further necessitated the need for reforms in the electoral system,” he wrote.

“The low voter turnout shows that people are losing their confidence in the election process.”

PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif expressed his gratitude to the people of NA-249 and congratulated party candidate Miftah Ismail.

“I pay tribute to the way Miftah Ismail worked day and night. I am confident that the election commission will meet the requirements of justice and transparency,” he added.

“The whole country saw how he [Miftah] was deprived of a victory in the election.”

Shehbaz pledged that the party would continue raising its voice for the residents of NA-249.

https://tribune.com.pk/story/2297645/bilawal-maryam-in-battle-of-words-as-ppp-bags-na-249

 

[Napa]

As far as PTI overturning the decades of looting is considered, no one would have questioned had IK made such tall claims. IK has gone the complete opposite of what he said before the elections & it is something he takes prides at. I think I do not need to go into detail about this as it has been pointed out many times. But I am trying to say that IK acts as holier than thou but in reality he is doing no different than what previous governments did. And personally, I am fine with it. He can do whatever he wishes to but for me, he needs to stay quiet and focus on the job which is the problem. He speaks too much and delivers nothing in comparison to that. People had hopes and expectations because of his tall claims & as soon they realized that he is no different, he is losing people's respect.

Secondly, most of his cabinet members including the crucial financial ministers were part of the so-called looting era. And the most interesting part is that these financial ministers who served under Zardari are preferred over Asad Umar who was considered to be the problem solver of all economic issue of the country.

<b>So, its about time that this government start focusing on the delivery rather than harping on what previous government did.</b>

That is the problem with PTI. IK hasn't shown any clue that he knows how to go about delivering a better economy.

It is true that IK inherited some problems. The Current Account Deficit was unsustainable and it needed severe belt-tightening which would inevitably lead to currency depreciation and inflation. No doubt he is getting hammered in these by-elections due to economic problems, especially inflation.

However, he has made the situation much worse due to his lack of pragmatism and outright foolishness.

He hasn't tried to rein in the Army and get it out of the economy.

He has needlessly insulted Modi multiple times (Hitler, small man, coward etc.). I understand he doesn't like Modi, but he is the PM of his country and should think before he insults other leaders. Pakistan still remains on FATF lists and certainly Indian opposition is a factor.

About a year ago, he was going around the world proclaiming that Kashmir will lead to a nuclear war. Way to go Kaptaan, I can just see investors salivating to invest in a country on the brink of a nuclear war.

I think all this talk about corruption is a distraction, which is what I believe you are saying. It doesn't matter if the leader skims off a few million or even a billion dollars a year when the country's economy is underproducing by hundreds of billions of dollars every year due to bad governance and economic mismanagement. It would be nice to have a non-corrupt leader, but the need of the moment is competence.

 

[PetroDollars]

I think the big picture from this election that people are not seeing is that despite a huge loss for PTI, they have increased the rift between PPP and PMLN, the cracks were being hidden before as they united agasint pti, but now there coming out in the open,

there surly will be no alliance or PDM or any other comedy party or platform against pti with them two on the same stage.

 

[Zeshan547]

I think the big picture from this election that people are not seeing is that despite a huge loss for PTI, they have increased the rift between PPP and PMLN, the cracks were being hidden before as they united agasint pti, but now there coming out in the open,

there surly will be no alliance or PDM or any other comedy party or platform against pti with them two on the same stage.

Alliance or no Alliance PTI will not be even third best Party in next election, It will most likely be, PMLN, PPP/TLP in center than PTI, from first to fourth all thanks to PTI performance. Before you start blaming the voters it is same voters which put PTI in power, or unless it really was Khalai makhloq,both options won't leave PTI fans with any face saving. Baqi khalai makhloq will make sure PMLN don't get two third majority otherwise their luxuries will have to cut down a lot.

 

[King-Misbah]

PTI suffering from PMLN and PPP bankrupting the economy. They had to go for austerity and the IMF program made them increase the prices of things. People can be happy now but Allah SWT is the best planners.

And where are the usual people shouting that this was a rigged election, like Kashmir a while back when PTI won

 

[PetroDollars]

Alliance or no Alliance PTI will not be even third best Party in next election, It will most likely be, PMLN, PPP/TLP in center than PTI, from first to fourth all thanks to PTI performance. Before you start blaming the voters it is same voters which put PTI in power, or unless it really was Khalai makhloq,both options won't leave PTI fans with any face saving. Baqi khalai makhloq will make sure PMLN don't get two third majority otherwise their luxuries will have to cut down a lot.

if the trend continues then maybe, but making pridictions in politics is useless till the elections arrive as things change so fast.

 

[MenInG]

 

[MenInG]

PML-N leader Miftah Ismail wants a recount of the votes cast during the April 29 by-election in Karachi's NA-249 constituency, in which PPP had claimed a victory.

Ismail wrote on Saturday a letter to the chief election commissioner seeking the vote recount in NA-249. Meanwhile, the PML-N has requested the Election Commission of Pakistan to conduct a forensic audit of the votes in the NA-249 constituency.

In his letter, Ismail wrote that presiding officers from 34 polling stations did not WhatsApp the results.

"We did not receive results from more than 30 polling stations. We have serious concerns about the behaviour of some presiding officers," Ismail wrote, adding that many Form 45s were not signed.

He said the returning officer is not following the law and not directing a recount of votes despite the minor difference in votes.

The PML-N candidate said that the counting of votes on Form 45 was different from the forms given to them by the RO. "We have not been provided Form 45 by the RO," he said.

He said in the letter that the RO did not provide the result summary according to the polling stations. He also said that the RO had not provided a receipt when asked when the WhatsApp results came in.

Ismail has asked the CEC to stop the ECP from finalising the results and recount votes in all polling stations of NA-249.

NA-249 by-poll: PML-N, PTI and others reject PPP's victory

He also said that the RO has shown clear bias by rejecting all their requests as more than half of the Form 45s were not signed by the RO.

PPP leader Saeed Ghani, meanwhile, said the PML-N should apply to the ECP for a vote recount and use its legal right, just as PPP will use its legal right too.

NA-249 election results

The PPP secured victory in the NA-249 by-election held on Thursday in the city's District West, with unofficial, provisional results showing a close contest between the PML-N and PPP in the final count.

PPP's Abdul Qadir Mandokhel bagged 16,156 votes to win the seat, followed by PML-N's Miftah Ismail who secured 15,473, unofficial results from polling stations showed.

Read more: PPP held system hostage for sake of one seat: Fawad Chaudhry on NA-249 by-election

Both parties had claimed victory for their candidates mid-way into counting, capturing the attention of audiences awaiting results.

The PML-N pulled no punches in blaming the PPP for attempting to rig the result, saying they would not accept the result without challenging the ECP.

After the final count was announced, the PML-N's Maryam Nawaz said the election had been "stolen" from her party.

GEO

 

[Bewal Express]

PML-N leader Miftah Ismail wants a recount of the votes cast during the April 29 by-election in Karachi's NA-249 constituency, in which PPP had claimed a victory.

Ismail wrote on Saturday a letter to the chief election commissioner seeking the vote recount in NA-249. Meanwhile, the PML-N has requested the Election Commission of Pakistan to conduct a forensic audit of the votes in the NA-249 constituency.

In his letter, Ismail wrote that presiding officers from 34 polling stations did not WhatsApp the results.

"We did not receive results from more than 30 polling stations. We have serious concerns about the behaviour of some presiding officers," Ismail wrote, adding that many Form 45s were not signed.

He said the returning officer is not following the law and not directing a recount of votes despite the minor difference in votes.

The PML-N candidate said that the counting of votes on Form 45 was different from the forms given to them by the RO. "We have not been provided Form 45 by the RO," he said.

He said in the letter that the RO did not provide the result summary according to the polling stations. He also said that the RO had not provided a receipt when asked when the WhatsApp results came in.

Ismail has asked the CEC to stop the ECP from finalising the results and recount votes in all polling stations of NA-249.

NA-249 by-poll: PML-N, PTI and others reject PPP's victory

He also said that the RO has shown clear bias by rejecting all their requests as more than half of the Form 45s were not signed by the RO.

PPP leader Saeed Ghani, meanwhile, said the PML-N should apply to the ECP for a vote recount and use its legal right, just as PPP will use its legal right too.

NA-249 election results

The PPP secured victory in the NA-249 by-election held on Thursday in the city's District West, with unofficial, provisional results showing a close contest between the PML-N and PPP in the final count.

PPP's Abdul Qadir Mandokhel bagged 16,156 votes to win the seat, followed by PML-N's Miftah Ismail who secured 15,473, unofficial results from polling stations showed.

Read more: PPP held system hostage for sake of one seat: Fawad Chaudhry on NA-249 by-election

Both parties had claimed victory for their candidates mid-way into counting, capturing the attention of audiences awaiting results.

The PML-N pulled no punches in blaming the PPP for attempting to rig the result, saying they would not accept the result without challenging the ECP.

After the final count was announced, the PML-N's Maryam Nawaz said the election had been "stolen" from her party.

GEO

Maryam and her duffer dad are saying that the election was stolen. As the PPP won, are they saying that the PPP stole it but Billo is going ballistic at the allegations. [MENTION=131701]Mamoon[/MENTION] both can't be right, so why is lying.

 

[Bigboii]

That is the problem with PTI. IK hasn't shown any clue that he knows how to go about delivering a better economy.

It is true that IK inherited some problems. The Current Account Deficit was unsustainable and it needed severe belt-tightening which would inevitably lead to currency depreciation and inflation. No doubt he is getting hammered in these by-elections due to economic problems, especially inflation.

However, he has made the situation much worse due to his lack of pragmatism and outright foolishness.

He hasn't tried to rein in the Army and get it out of the economy.

He has needlessly insulted Modi multiple times (Hitler, small man, coward etc.). I understand he doesn't like Modi, but he is the PM of his country and should think before he insults other leaders. Pakistan still remains on FATF lists and certainly Indian opposition is a factor.

About a year ago, he was going around the world proclaiming that Kashmir will lead to a nuclear war. Way to go Kaptaan, I can just see investors salivating to invest in a country on the brink of a nuclear war.

I think all this talk about corruption is a distraction, which is what I believe you are saying. It doesn't matter if the leader skims off a few million or even a billion dollars a year when the country's economy is underproducing by hundreds of billions of dollars every year due to bad governance and economic mismanagement. It would be nice to have a non-corrupt leader, but the need of the moment is competence.

So the reason for IK's failures are because he "disrespected" indian supreme leader Modi? Lol

I highly doubt if it even made 1% of a difference

Some of y'all severely overrate Modi and his impact on Pakistan, it genuinely doesn't impact Pak in any way shape or form...

 

[shah_1]

My dad was probably the biggest supporter of PTI, defending IK all the time but he is so bitterly disappointed by the government performance.


No wonder they lost the election badly.

 

[Napa]

So the reason for IK's failures are because he "disrespected" indian supreme leader Modi? Lol

I highly doubt if it even made 1% of a difference

Some of y'all severely overrate Modi and his impact on Pakistan, it genuinely doesn't impact Pak in any way shape or form...

To improve its economy, Pakistan needs to improve its security situation. There are different things it can do for that, notably the ISI ending its support for the jihadi outfits. Better relations with India will also help, but it is not the top factor.

I can't say whether it will make a 1% difference or not, but it is very unusual in relations between countries to use such language. Generally speaking, even if India has a 1% negative effect, why should IK ignore the 1% impact? It certainly doesn't create a good impression about Pakistan in anyone's minds.

 

[MenInG]

Every thread on Politics is now being hijacked and killed with this overseas/local Pakistanis discussion.

This will not be allowed.

Stick to the topic and discuss the pros/cons without worrying about who lives where.

 

[Gharib Aadmi]

This by election does not reflect on PTI's popularity or lack of in Pakistan let alone Karachi.

1 - First of all this election had a very low voter turnout. In the general election voter turnout will be much higher. Not to mention the fact that right now we are in Ramzaan, and Covid cases are increasing.

2 - This is a very diverse constituency. NA-249, Karachi West II, was created in 2018. Before that the area representing this seat were part of other constituencies. And those constituencies had an Urdu Speaking majority, which resulted in MQM winning.

3 - Karachi whether one likes it or not still has an Urdu Speaking majority. And they will not vote for either PML N or PPP, which they see as a Punjabi and Sindhi ethnic based parties.

The bulk of Karachi seats in the 2023 general election will be won won either by PTI or MQM.

 

[Gharib Aadmi]

I think the big picture from this election that people are not seeing is that despite a huge loss for PTI, they have increased the rift between PPP and PMLN, the cracks were being hidden before as they united agasint pti, but now there coming out in the open,

there surly will be no alliance or PDM or any other comedy party or platform against pti with them two on the same stage.

Yes. Had PDM contested a united election it would be very hard for PTI to win. Its good for PTI and Pakistan that this unholy alliance of PML N and PPP, Mullahs and Seculars, the corrupt and more corrupt is broken.

 

[Zeshan547]

Yes. Had PDM contested a united election it would be very hard for PTI to win. Its good for PTI and Pakistan that this unholy alliance of PML N and PPP, Mullahs and Seculars, the corrupt and more corrupt is broken.

Alliance or no Alliance after all has transpired the PTIs fate is sealed, unless some dramatic turn of events happen PTI is not forming federal government in next election that is for sure and they have inky themselves to blame and sooner PTI supporter realize this bitter truth the better for them or else the shock will be too hard to handle. Even khalai makhloq can't or won't help this incompetent lot in next election.

 

[ChTab]

PML-N rejects govt's proposal of electronic voting machines

Shehbaz says crucial national issues cannot be decided by one individual; the world already rejected electronic voting.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif rejected on Sunday the government's proposal to use electronic voting machines, saying such decisions cannot be made by one individual.

"The sensitive process of electoral reforms is undertaken with the will and confidence of the entirety of the nation," said Shehbaz said in a statement.

"The reforms come to fore through consultation between all the sides involved and in the light of the masses' opinion and unanimity," he added.

The PML-N chief went on to add that "crucial national steps do not take place on the aspirations or order of one individual."

Terming the parliament a centre and reflection of the aspirations of people, he said, "It has been locked up for the last three years."

"We can undertake electoral reforms as we have the patience and will to take political rivals along and implement their proposals."

Shehbaz recalled that the PML-N undertook historic political reforms with the consultation of all political parties, including the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

"No one had objected to those reforms as it was a reflection of endorsement by all," he said, adding that "the opposition was mocked by chants of NRO as it attempted to introduce the charter of economy and [other] positive propositions."

Concluding, the PML-N chief said that the world has rejected electronic voting, adding that the Election Commission has also termed it unviable.

He advised the rulers to instead pay attention to the economy, skyrocketing inflation, joblessness, and the miserable conditions of the masses.

'PML-N avoiding reforms'

Responding to the PML-N's stance, Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry lamented that the party was "avoiding the proposed reforms."

He added, "why would a party, that always came to power though conspiracies, talk about reforms."

On Saturday, Prime Minister Imran Khan, while referring to the claims of rigging in NA-249, Karachi by-polls and Senate elections, reiterated that electronic voting machines (EVM) were the only answer to reclaim the credibility of elections in the country, and invited the opposition to sit with the government and "select an EVM model we have available".

https://tribune.com.pk/story/2297717/pml-n-rejects-govts-proposal-of-electronic-voting-machines

 

[Gharib Aadmi]

Alliance or no Alliance after all has transpired the PTIs fate is sealed, unless some dramatic turn of events happen PTI is not forming federal government in next election that is for sure and they have inky themselves to blame and sooner PTI supporter realize this bitter truth the better for them or else the shock will be too hard to handle. Even khalai makhloq can't or won't help this incompetent lot in next election.

If competence decides elections than PPP would not win interior Sindh in every election. Or do you think they have done a good job?

KPK is voting for PTI.
If a South Punjab province is created PTI will there.
Karachi PTI should win, as Urdu Speaking people will never vote for PPP or PML N. If PTI loses it will be MQM who would join PTI in a election.

Election will be decided on how many seats can PTI win from Central and North Punjab.

 

[Gharib Aadmi]

People had hopes and expectations because of his tall claims & as soon they realized that he is no different, he is losing people's respect.

Which politician in Pakistan do people respect more than Imran Khan?

Secondly, most of his cabinet members including the crucial financial ministers were part of the so-called looting era. And the most interesting part is that these financial ministers who served under Zardari are preferred over Asad Umar who was considered to be the problem solver of all economic issue of the country.

To become a cabinet member you must be an elected parliamentarian. He needed electables to win the elections, so obviously some of those people will need to be part of the cabinet.

So, its about time that this government start focusing on the delivery rather than harping on what previous government did.

Its not mutually exclusive. You can focus on delivery, yet at the same time blame the previous government, so that peoples anger is directed at them. And not at you. That strategy wont work forever, but can work for years.

 

[Bigboii]

If competence decides elections than PPP would not win interior Sindh in every election. Or do you think they have done a good job?

KPK is voting for PTI.
If a South Punjab province is created PTI will there.
Karachi PTI should win, as Urdu Speaking people will never vote for PPP or PML N. If PTI loses it will be MQM who would join PTI in a election.

Election will be decided on how many seats can PTI win from Central and North Punjab.

Need a history lesson...
What's the beef between Urdu speakers and PMLN all the Karachi people hate those poor guys...

What's up with that?

 

[Zeshan547]

Which politician in Pakistan do people respect more than Imran Khan?




To become a cabinet member you must be an elected parliamentarian. He needed electables to win the elections, so obviously some of those people will need to be part of the cabinet.



Its not mutually exclusive. You can focus on delivery, yet at the same time blame the previous government, so that peoples anger is directed at them. And not at you. That strategy wont work forever, but can work for years.

This post sums up what's wrong with PTI and its supporters. Just Perform for goddess sake and make the life of common Pakistan easier than everything else and take care of itself, you will even get two third majority but only on performance, no amount of shouting will win you the election, har bar sirf container pr kiye wadun se vote nai de ge awam, Tabdeeli ka sara nasha haran krdia awam ka, Select and ten random Pakistani on any city of Pakistani on street and atleast 7 out of 10 will say they will not vote for PTI in next elections.

 

[ChTab]

PML-N lost NA-249 by-election due to mismanagement, overconfidence: Saeed Ghani

KARACHI: The PPP has fired shots at the PML-N, after the latter accused the former of winning the NA-249 by-election through unfair means.

"The PML-N lost the NA-249 by-election owing to its own mismanagement and overconfidence," said the minister, addressing a news conference.

The minister's press conference came a few days after the NA-240 by-election was held in Karachi, where PPP's Qadir Mandokhail emerged victorious, triggering allegations the party had resorted to unfair means from rival parties.

The PML-N had also lashed out at the PPP, accusing it of rigging the by-poll.

Ghani said there were videos doing the rounds on the internet in which a PPP polling agent can be seen being stopped by a Rangers official, who finds out the agent is carrying some money.

The minister said PML-N leaders were promoting the video and were claiming it was proof that the PPP had bought the NA-249 victory through its polling agents.

"Anyone who has ever contested an election knows that whenever a polling agent contests a vote, there is a fee for that [which must be paid]," he said. "I don't know the amount of the fee, but it must be a few hundred rupees. That is what our polling agents had," he said, rejecting claims the PPP's polling agents had handed out bribes.

On allegations that he somehow got ahold of the election results before they came out, Ghani said he had tweeted the numbers that were available to him from the form 45 issued by the Election Commission of Pakistan.

He said the PML-N had no right to raise a hue and cry about the election results, adding that it was strange that no one bothered to raise their voices when the PPP candidate was trailing behind Miftah Ismail.

"This is very strange. Not a word of protest was said when the PML-N candidate was in the lead and when the voting process was underway," he said. "It was after the election concluded and the results were announced that everyone started complaining."

Ghani rejects allegations of PPP striking a 'deal'
Ghani said the PPP also wanted answers as to why the PML-N had started celebrating a victory in NA-249, in advance of the announcement of the results.

The minister advised the PML-N against taunting the PPP of "making a deal" to win the polls, adding that it was the PML-N itself that had benefitted from such deals in the past.

He recounted how former prime ministers Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Benazir Bhutto had lost their lives in Pakistan and former president Asif Ali Zardari had been jailed for several years without ever being convicted.

The minister challenged the PML-N to "pull up a chart" and see which of the two parties, the PML-N and the PPP, had benefitted the most after the '80s.

"If the elections can't be won without striking a deal with the establishment, then the PML-N should tell us how it managed to win three elections?" he asked.

NA-249 by-poll: Election stolen from PML-N, alleges Maryam Nawaz
After the PPP candidate emerged victorious in the NA-249 by-poll, PML-N vice president Maryam Nawaz said the election had been "stolen" from the PML-N.

In a statement on Twitter, Maryam had said the election was stolen from PML-N by only a few hundred votes.

"ECP must withhold the results of one of the most disputed & controversial elections. Even if it doesn’t, this victory will be temporary and will Insha’Allah come back to PML-N soon."

She added that the "vote is getting respect and will continue to receive it".

https://www.geo.tv/latest/348318-pm...e-to-mismanagement-overconfidence-saeed-ghani

 

[Gharib Aadmi]

This post sums up what's wrong with PTI and its supporters. Just Perform for goddess sake and make the life of common Pakistan easier than everything else and take care of itself, you will even get two third majority but only on performance, no amount of shouting will win you the election, har bar sirf container pr kiye wadun se vote nai de ge awam, Tabdeeli ka sara nasha haran krdia awam ka, Select and ten random Pakistani on any city of Pakistani on street and atleast 7 out of 10 will say they will not vote for PTI in next elections.

I never said performance is not important. It is and that will certainly be a factor in the election.

However the expectations that the Pakistani people have can not be met by the 2023 election. PTI will rightfully blame the prior governments for the mess they got Pakistan into, while attempting their best to solve the many problems of Pakistan.

 

[Gharib Aadmi]

Need a history lesson...
What's the beef between Urdu speakers and PMLN all the Karachi people hate those poor guys...

What's up with that?

They see them as a Punjab based party. They blame PML N for the Jinnahpur episode, as well as various discrimination they faced as not being "sons of the soil". However they dont hate them as much as they hate PPP.

Before MQM Urdu Speaking people in Karachi voted for Jamaat-i-Islami, as they did not represent any ethnic group. However as Urdu Speaking people are socially liberal (by Pakistani standards), once MQM came on the scene they abandoned the Mullahs and voted for them.

MQM might have been thugs and badmaash, they were still viewed as the lesser evil. However now that PTI came on the scene the majority of Urdu Speakers have switched to PTI, and PTI will most likely win again from Karachi.

Same way that Sindhis from interior will vote PPP regardless of their performance, so will Urban Sindh go mainly for PTI or MQM regardless of performance.

 

[Zeshan547]

They see them as a Punjab based party. They blame PML N for the Jinnahpur episode, as well as various discrimination they faced as not being "sons of the soil". However they dont hate them as much as they hate PPP.

Before MQM Urdu Speaking people in Karachi voted for Jamaat-i-Islami, as they did not represent any ethnic group. However as Urdu Speaking people are socially liberal (by Pakistani standards), once MQM came on the scene they abandoned the Mullahs and voted for them.

MQM might have been thugs and badmaash, they were still viewed as the lesser evil. However now that PTI came on the scene the majority of Urdu Speakers have switched to PTI, and PTI will most likely win again from Karachi.

Same way that Sindhis from interior will vote PPP regardless of their performance, so will Urban Sindh go mainly for PTI or MQM regardless of performance.

This is too generalized view i think, there are a lot more variables involved which can sway the results from one side to other.

 

[KB]

Before MQM Urdu Speaking people in Karachi voted for Jamaat-i-Islami, as they did not represent any ethnic group. However as Urdu Speaking people are socially liberal (by Pakistani standards), once MQM came on the scene they abandoned the Mullahs and voted for them.

I think it is correct to say that the appeal in the early years of the JI was probably less to do with the party’s revolutionary religious stance than its perceived ‘anti-ethnic’ position. But I think it is also important to stress that in the early years the JI was very active in providing welfare assistance in a context where the state’s policies in rehabilitating refugees in Karachi were perceived to be dilatory. But that is going off-topic, so I will leave it as this.

 

[PetroDollars]

Yes. Had PDM contested a united election it would be very hard for PTI to win. Its good for PTI and Pakistan that this unholy alliance of PML N and PPP, Mullahs and Seculars, the corrupt and more corrupt is broken.

One thing that is clear from this election is that - There is no chance of an alliance between ppp and pmln

and secondly, TLP is now eating into both pmln and pti vote banks.

No wonder the PPP liberals are enjoying the TLP show.

 

[MenInG]

ISLAMABAD: The ******tan Peoples Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) on Sunday continued their war of words over the outcome of recently-held by-election on a National Assembly seat (NA-249) in Karachi as the latter submitted an application to the chief election commissioner (CEC) asking him to place election material, including ballot papers, under the supervision of the Army or Rangers.

The application was submitted by Miftah Ismail, the PML-N candidate in the constituency, after the PPP “welcomed” the decision of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to stay announcement of official results for a recount, and asked the PML-N not to accuse the party of winning the seat with the support of the “establishment”.

The leaders of the two parties, in their statements, however, continued to attack each other with the allegations of having a covert support of the “establishment”.

PPP candidate Qadir Mandokhail had won the NA-249 by-election in Karachi by a small margin after securing 16,156 votes, while Dr Ismail had secured second position with 15,473 votes, according to provisional results released on Friday. The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf and PML-N had cried foul and subsequently rejected the results.

In his application to the CEC with the subject “safe custody of ballot papers and other materials”, Mr Ismail of the PML-N stated “most of the polling staff/presiding officers were from the provincial government of Sindh and they favoured the ruling party in illegal manner as complained by almost every contesting candidate/parties”.

“We would like to record our serious apprehension as to the safe custody/security of the ballot papers and other materials … lying in the custody of Sindh Police, which again is a provincial government department and there is strong likelihood that the ballot papers, counterfoils of the issued ballot papers, marked copies of the electoral rolls, ballot paper accounts etc may be tempered to frustrate the whole electoral process,” says Mr Ismail in the application, which was released to the media by the PML-N.

“We, therefore, request you that the custody of all election materials, including ballot papers, in sealed form, may kindly be taken over by the Commission (ECP) and placed at some safe place under the supervision of either Pakistan Rangers or Pak Army till the final disposal of the matter,” requested the PML-N leader.

He “appreciated” the immediate intervention of the ECP for issuing the “stay order” against the consolidation of results and giving him an opportunity of hearing against his application for vote recounting.

An ECP official, when contacted, said under the rules, the returning officer for a constituency was the custodian of election materials. He said perhaps the PML-N candidate wanted to say that security should be provided to the returning officer for NA-249 by the Army or the Rangers and not by police.

Earlier, speaking at a news conference at the party’s media office in Islamabad, PPP leaders Farhatullah Babar and Nayyar Bokhari “welcomed” the ECP’s decision to have a recount in NA-249 constituency on the PML-N’s request.

Mr Babar said making such a request was the PML-N’s right and the PPP welcomed it as they wanted to see the ECP as a strong institution. Under the rules, he said, a recount could be conducted in a constituency where the winning margin was less than five per cent of total votes polled.

Mr Babar said NA-249 was not a new constituency for the PPP as the party candidate had won from the constituency in the 1988 elections.

“The PPP does not have a large majority of votes in this constituency but we have considerable support. The PPP has shown groundwork and activism and has now won,” he said.

The PPP leader said only the ECP could explain the reason for the delay in the vote counting process but there were 30 candidates and eight election observers who had to be given the Form 45 during Ramazan. For this exercise, he said, the ECP had to fill 10 to 12 forms.

Mr Babar said if the PPP had lost this election, it would never have had raised this issue. He expressed the hope that in the recount, the votes of the PPP might increase.

“You must go to the ECP but do not say that the PPP has come through the help of the establishment. Our movement is against Imran Khan and not the opposition,” said Mr Babar in an apparent reference to some of the statements of PML-N leaders in which they alleged that the PPP had struck a deal with the establishment.

“If you will talk about a deal with the establishment, then there will be talks on the departure of the leaders abroad and the grant of bails,” he said in an apparent reference to Nawaz Sharif’s departure to London in 2019 despite conviction and the recent grant of bail to Shehbaz Sharif and his son Hamza Shehbaz.

Replying to a question about the differences within the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) and the request of Maulana Fazlur Rehman to the PPP to rejoin the alliance, Mr Babar said it was the PPP which had founded the opposition alliance.

“Who are these people who are talking about us approaching them to rejoin the PDM? Instead, they should come to us, take back the show cause notices and apologise to us,” Mr Babar said.

Nayyar Bukhari alleged that it was the PML-N which had harmed the PDM. The PPP, he said, was still ready for a long march and a no-confidence motion against the government.

About the Karachi by-election, he said PPP candidate Qadir Mandokhail was a political activist and had been present in the constituency for the past many years. He said like the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) which had lost the Senate elections by nominating a technocrat, Dr Abdul Hafeez Sheikh, the PML-N had introduced another technocrat, Miftah Ismail, in the by-election.

Mr Bukhari expressed the hope that the ECP would take decisions according to the law.

Immediately after the PPP leaders’ press conference, PML-N Senator Musadik Malik in a statement “felicitated PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari for becoming a B-team of the PTI”.

The PML-N Senator taunted the PPP by saying a party having just seven members from Punjab in the legislatures was talking about long march and no-confidence motions. He said the PPP wanted to bring a no-confidence motion in Punjab like it “stole” the elections in NA-249 and the office of the opposition leader in the Senate.

Another PML-N leader, Talal Chaudhry, in a statement said the PPP had lost its claim to be called an opposition party after getting the Senate opposition leader office with the support of the government.

Published in Dawn, May 3rd, 2021

 

[Bewal Express]

ISLAMABAD: The ******tan Peoples Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) on Sunday continued their war of words over the outcome of recently-held by-election on a National Assembly seat (NA-249) in Karachi as the latter submitted an application to the chief election commissioner (CEC) asking him to place election material, including ballot papers, under the supervision of the Army or Rangers.

The application was submitted by Miftah Ismail, the PML-N candidate in the constituency, after the PPP “welcomed” the decision of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to stay announcement of official results for a recount, and asked the PML-N not to accuse the party of winning the seat with the support of the “establishment”.

The leaders of the two parties, in their statements, however, continued to attack each other with the allegations of having a covert support of the “establishment”.

PPP candidate Qadir Mandokhail had won the NA-249 by-election in Karachi by a small margin after securing 16,156 votes, while Dr Ismail had secured second position with 15,473 votes, according to provisional results released on Friday. The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf and PML-N had cried foul and subsequently rejected the results.

In his application to the CEC with the subject “safe custody of ballot papers and other materials”, Mr Ismail of the PML-N stated “most of the polling staff/presiding officers were from the provincial government of Sindh and they favoured the ruling party in illegal manner as complained by almost every contesting candidate/parties”.

“We would like to record our serious apprehension as to the safe custody/security of the ballot papers and other materials … lying in the custody of Sindh Police, which again is a provincial government department and there is strong likelihood that the ballot papers, counterfoils of the issued ballot papers, marked copies of the electoral rolls, ballot paper accounts etc may be tempered to frustrate the whole electoral process,” says Mr Ismail in the application, which was released to the media by the PML-N.

“We, therefore, request you that the custody of all election materials, including ballot papers, in sealed form, may kindly be taken over by the Commission (ECP) and placed at some safe place under the supervision of either Pakistan Rangers or Pak Army till the final disposal of the matter,” requested the PML-N leader.

He “appreciated” the immediate intervention of the ECP for issuing the “stay order” against the consolidation of results and giving him an opportunity of hearing against his application for vote recounting.

An ECP official, when contacted, said under the rules, the returning officer for a constituency was the custodian of election materials. He said perhaps the PML-N candidate wanted to say that security should be provided to the returning officer for NA-249 by the Army or the Rangers and not by police.

Earlier, speaking at a news conference at the party’s media office in Islamabad, PPP leaders Farhatullah Babar and Nayyar Bokhari “welcomed” the ECP’s decision to have a recount in NA-249 constituency on the PML-N’s request.

Mr Babar said making such a request was the PML-N’s right and the PPP welcomed it as they wanted to see the ECP as a strong institution. Under the rules, he said, a recount could be conducted in a constituency where the winning margin was less than five per cent of total votes polled.

Mr Babar said NA-249 was not a new constituency for the PPP as the party candidate had won from the constituency in the 1988 elections.

“The PPP does not have a large majority of votes in this constituency but we have considerable support. The PPP has shown groundwork and activism and has now won,” he said.

The PPP leader said only the ECP could explain the reason for the delay in the vote counting process but there were 30 candidates and eight election observers who had to be given the Form 45 during Ramazan. For this exercise, he said, the ECP had to fill 10 to 12 forms.

Mr Babar said if the PPP had lost this election, it would never have had raised this issue. He expressed the hope that in the recount, the votes of the PPP might increase.

“You must go to the ECP but do not say that the PPP has come through the help of the establishment. Our movement is against Imran Khan and not the opposition,” said Mr Babar in an apparent reference to some of the statements of PML-N leaders in which they alleged that the PPP had struck a deal with the establishment.

“If you will talk about a deal with the establishment, then there will be talks on the departure of the leaders abroad and the grant of bails,” he said in an apparent reference to Nawaz Sharif’s departure to London in 2019 despite conviction and the recent grant of bail to Shehbaz Sharif and his son Hamza Shehbaz.

Replying to a question about the differences within the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) and the request of Maulana Fazlur Rehman to the PPP to rejoin the alliance, Mr Babar said it was the PPP which had founded the opposition alliance.

“Who are these people who are talking about us approaching them to rejoin the PDM? Instead, they should come to us, take back the show cause notices and apologise to us,” Mr Babar said.

Nayyar Bukhari alleged that it was the PML-N which had harmed the PDM. The PPP, he said, was still ready for a long march and a no-confidence motion against the government.

About the Karachi by-election, he said PPP candidate Qadir Mandokhail was a political activist and had been present in the constituency for the past many years. He said like the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) which had lost the Senate elections by nominating a technocrat, Dr Abdul Hafeez Sheikh, the PML-N had introduced another technocrat, Miftah Ismail, in the by-election.

Mr Bukhari expressed the hope that the ECP would take decisions according to the law.

Immediately after the PPP leaders’ press conference, PML-N Senator Musadik Malik in a statement “felicitated PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari for becoming a B-team of the PTI”.

The PML-N Senator taunted the PPP by saying a party having just seven members from Punjab in the legislatures was talking about long march and no-confidence motions. He said the PPP wanted to bring a no-confidence motion in Punjab like it “stole” the elections in NA-249 and the office of the opposition leader in the Senate.

Another PML-N leader, Talal Chaudhry, in a statement said the PPP had lost its claim to be called an opposition party after getting the Senate opposition leader office with the support of the government.

Published in Dawn, May 3rd, 2021

So now these thugs are at each others throat and I didn't know whether to laugh or cry when I read "security should be provided to the returning officer for NA-249 by the Army or the Rangers and not by police". Didn't these thugs demand that army should not be involved in elections. These clowns have the memories of an amoeba and expect others to be the same.

 

[MenInG]

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Tuesday accepted Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) candidate Miftah Ismail's plea and ordered recounting in the NA-249 constituency.

Lawmakers have been asked by the ECP to reach the office of the returning officer (RO) on May 6 for the recount.

The election commission had earlier today reserved its decision on the plea.

PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif welcomed the move and said the "narrow difference in votes necessitated this in the interest of transparency".

"Credibility of vote is a sure foundation of democracy."

During the hearing, the party's counsel Salman Akram Raja said, "We are restricting ourselves to only the recount for today. However, ECP can order a re-poll based on the available evidence."

"The recount is the first of our demands, but we can demand a re-poll too if we are not satisfied [with the outcome]. The ECP has an expanded scope under Article 218 of the Constitution and it should intervene in the matter."

At this, member ECP Punjab Altaf Qureshi said that the commission will remain limited to the ambit of the ongoing case.

"We cannot review the plea for re-polling without a [formal] petition filed in this regard," he maintained. The ECP is expected to announce the verdict on the fresh plea today.

According to Raja, Form 45 of some 167 polling stations didn't have the signatures of presiding officers on them.

"Moreover, our polling agents were not issued Form 46," he said, adding that the presiding officers are bound to provide the signed Form 45 and 46 to the polling agents. Without it, he maintained, the entire election stands doubtful.

Pakistan People's Party's (PPP) counsel Latif Khosa pointed out that the PML-N didn't complain about any irregularity during the polls.

"It isn't enough to say that there has been an irregularity; the claimant also has to point out where it took place," he added.

The PML-N maintains that their mandate was "stolen" in the election, saying it had been leading the polls since the voting started.

The PPP bagged victory in the NA-249 Karachi by-election held on April 29, defeating the PML-N contender by 683 votes.

Expres Tribune

 

[sindhiboy]

They see them as a Punjab based party. They blame PML N for the Jinnahpur episode, as well as various discrimination they faced as not being "sons of the soil". However they dont hate them as much as they hate PPP.

Before MQM Urdu Speaking people in Karachi voted for Jamaat-i-Islami, as they did not represent any ethnic group. However as Urdu Speaking people are socially liberal (by Pakistani standards), once MQM came on the scene they abandoned the Mullahs and voted for them.

MQM might have been thugs and badmaash, they were still viewed as the lesser evil. However now that PTI came on the scene the majority of Urdu Speakers have switched to PTI, and PTI will most likely win again from Karachi.

Same way that Sindhis from interior will vote PPP regardless of their performance, so will Urban Sindh go mainly for PTI or MQM regardless of performance.

Correct.

What I gather from ardent ppp and ardent mqm supporters is that all they care about pertains to whether there are sindhis or urdu speakers in positions of power

Sad state of affairs. What makes this more stupid is that they ignore the fact that parties like the PPP compromise of members who are Urdu speakers and punjabis as well. So current politics should not have anything to do with ethnic wars.

 

[MenInG]

All parties, except the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), and independent candidates seeking recounting in the NA-249 constituency boycotted the process on Wednesday over non-provision of Form 46 and counterfoil of ballot papers not being checked.

In a letter addressed to the returning officer (RO), the parties maintained that, "For want of non-provision of Form 46 and denial to allow access to the counterfoil of ballot paper, we cannot participate in [the] subject proceedings."

The signatories to the letter included the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP), Pasban and others.

The parties pointed out in the letter that, "...the first bag [of ballot papers] lying on [the] table was without a seal," adding that all parties were boycotting the recount "under this attitude".

The aggrieved parties maintained that there was no precedent of recounting being conducted without the empty ballots being counted, or Form 46 and counterfoil signatures or seals not being checked.

'All ballot bags unsealed'

According to PML-N's Miftah Ismail, "All ballot bags were unsealed when [they] reached [the] RO office." He also alleged that 167 forms did not have signatures of the presiding officers.

According to PTI's Amjad Iqbal Afridi, the by-poll had been "planned". He said they were not being provided with Form 46, adding that the party will not let the PPP influence results. "There should be a re-poll in the constituency," he maintained.

PSP's Hafeezuddin accused the ROs of siding with those who rigged the polls.

The ECP reportedly contacted the boycotting lawmakers, but they refused to be a part of the process.

'PPP to reclaim victory'

Meanwhile, PPP's winning candidate Qadir Khan Mandokhel said that "defeat is in PML-N's fate, regardless of what they do."

He admitted that the recount was delayed by two hours, but added that the representatives of political parties, except for two of them, were present during the process.

"Why is Form 46 an issue when there's a recount ongoing?" he asked. "It will be generated afresh."

Provincial information minister Nasir Shah said that PPP's victory is not being accepted. Terming the boycott of the recount a "drama", Shah said it is an attempt to pressurise and coerce ECP.

Senior PPP leader Shehla Raza said that PML-N "escaped the recount because it was fearful of its imminent defeat."

She asked the party to accept the results. "It is as if the PML-N wants the electoral record to set up its own election cell."

Raza further said, "first, they rejected the results and now, they are making the recount controversial."

However, despite the boycott, the recounting that commenced at the RO office today continued.

According to the returning officer, it would be difficult to complete the process of counting 73,471 votes cast in 276 polling stations of the constituency in a single-day.

“Each and every vote will be re-checked in the presence of all candidates of different political parties and their chief polling agents. We will try to finish the task in a day, but I believe it will take more time,” said a senior ECP official.

NA-249 recounting

On May 4, ECP accepted Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) candidate Miftah Ismail's plea and ordered recounting in the NA-249 constituency.

The PML-N maintains that their mandate was "stolen" in the election, saying it had been leading the polls since the voting started.

The PPP bagged victory in the NA-249 Karachi by-election held on April 29, defeating the PML-N contender by 683 votes.

https://tribune.com.pk/story/2298594/parties-boycott-na-249-recount-over-non-provision-of-form-46