Vote count began after polling ended in the National Assembly constituency NA-193 Rajanpur amid strict security.
Polling began at 8am and continued till 5pm without any break. The seat fell vacant due to the death of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) member Jaffar Khan Leghari. He died in Lahore on December 31, 2022, after a prolonged illness.
Election Commission
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has set up 237 polling stations in the constituency out of which 68 have been declared sensitive. At least 2,650 police personnel have been deployed to deal with any untoward situation while Pakistan Army and Rangers personnel are also patrolling the area.
Candidates
11 candidates are contesting NA-193 Rajanpur by-poll, but the main contest is expected between the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) candidate Emaar Owais Leghari and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) Mohsin Leghari.
On Friday, Punjab’s caretaker government approached the ECP with a written request to postpone the by-election citing security concerns.
Earlier, Commissioner Dera Ghazi Khan Division Khalid Manzoor mentioned the security concerns in his letter to the caretaker provincial government.
But, the electoral watchdog on Saturday dismissed these concerns on the grounds that adequate security measures were being taken by the Punjab Police and Rangers for the provision of security at all the polling stations.
ECP’s Central Control Room starts monitoring Rajanpur by-polls
A Central Control Room set up at Election Commission Secretariat Islamabad has started monitoring by polls being held in NA 193, Rajanpur on Sunday.
A spokesman of Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) said in a statement on Sunday that the Control Room would continue working till receipt of the last result.
Senior officers were monitoring the electioneering process from the Control Room, Islamabad. Separate Control Rooms established at Lahore and Rajanpur have also started registering complaints of election process. Immediate action would be taken against election code violators.
The spokesman said that polling related complaints could be lodged round the clock on telephone no 051-9204402; 051-9204403; 051-9210837 and 051-9210838 and the complaints could also be faxed to the Control Room on 051-9204404.
