Polling Concluded Peaceful, Uninterrupted On One NA, Nine PA Constituencies In KP

PESHAWAR, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 14th Oct, 2018 ) :The polling process in bye-elections for one National Assembly and nine Provincial Assembly Constituencies concluded on Sunday without any interruption in a peaceful environment here across the province.

Polling started at 8 am and continued till 5:00 pm without break. Main contest was between the candidates of ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and opposition alliance. A total of 59 candidates including seven for one National Assembly seat and 52 for nine Provincial Assembly seat contested the bye elections.

It is pertinent to mention that overseas Pakistani would exercise their vote of franchise for the very first time in by-elections. NA-35 Bannu was among the seats that were won by Prime Minister Imran Khan who retained NA 95 Mianwali and vacated the remaining.

PK-3 Swat was vacated by Haider Ali of PTI, PK 7 by Dr Amjad Ali of PYI, PK 44 Swabi by Assad Qaisar of PTI, PK-61 and PK-64 by Pervaiz Khattak of PTI, PK-97 Dera Ismail Khan by Ali Amin Gandapur of PTI and PK-53 Mardan was vacated by Haider Hoti of ANP.

Elections on two provincial assembly seats were postponed when Haroon Bliour of ANP who was contesting elections from PK-78 Peshawar and Ikram Ullah Gandapur of PTI who was aspirant from PK-99 Dera Ismail Khan were slain in terrorism attacks.

As many as 2.299 million registered voters exercised their right of franchise in bye-polls. The number of registered male voters is 1.151 million and 0.878 million female voters.

A total of 158 candidates including three females were in the run for the bye elections against one NA and nine PA seats in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Two women contested on NA-35 and one in PK-78 Peshawar constituency.

The bye-election was held on NA-35 constituency Bannu and nine provincial assembly seats including two each in Swat, Nowshera and Dera Ismail Khan and one each provincial assembly seat in Swabi, Peshawar and Mardan.

The nine PK seats where election were held included PK-3 and PK7 in Swat, PK-61 and PK-64 in Nowshera, PK-97 and PK-99 in DI Khan, PK-78 Peshawar, PK-44 Swabi and PK53 Mardan.

The polling started at 8pm and continued till 5.00 pm without any break. Voters in premises of polling stations have been allowed to cast their votes. The NA-35 Bannu seat had fallen vacant after Imran Khan vacated the seat and kept his National Assembly seat from his native Mianwali district.

PK-3 Swat seat has been vacated by PTI's Dr. Haider Ali, PK-7 Swat by PTI's Dr Amjad Ali, PK-44 Swabi by Asad Qaiser, PK-53 Mardan by Ameer Haider� Khan Hoti of ANP, PK-61 and PK-64 Nowshera by former chief minister Pervez Khattak, PK-78 Peshawar where election couldn't be held due to the death of ANP's Haroon Bilour in a terrorist attack during the election campaign, PK-97 DI Khan vacated by PTI's Ali Amin Gandapur, and PK-99 Dera Ismail Khan where election was also postponed after the death of PTI's Sardar Ikramullah Gandapur in a suicide bombing.

In majority of the constituencies, the election contested between the candidates of the ruling PTI, the ANP and the JUI (F). The grand opposition parties have fielded joint candidates against the PTI’s nominee in the constituencies.