By-polls: Counting of votes underway

Counting of votes is in progress for 21 national and provincial seats after polling concluded for by-elections.

Earlier, polling for by-elections concluded after several incidents of violence reported.

However, the voters present on the premises of polling stations were allowed to cast their votes after 5pm.

Voting for the national and provincial assembles started at 8am, which continued without any break till 5pm.

Polling for five seats of National Assembly and 16 seats of provincial assembly was marred by several incidents of violence, leaving a political worker dead in Narowal.

The constituencies of the National Assembly in which by-elections were held include two of Punjab, two of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and one of Sindh.

The by-elections on the seats of provincial assemblies include 12 seats of Punjab Assembly, two seats each of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan assemblies.

The election commission’s request has been approved by the federal government to deploy the civil armed forces and the army. Police security will be the first, civil armed forces will be the second while the Pakistan Army personnel will perform duties in the third tier.

On the other hand, mobile phone service will remain suspended in some districts of Balochistan and Punjab during the by-elections.

According to the announcement issued by the PTA, in the light of the instructions of the Ministry of Interior and the government, mobile phone service will be temporarily suspended in some districts of Punjab and Balochistan during the by-polls.

The statement said that the decision to suspend the mobile phone service has been taken to complete the election process in an uninterrupted and transparent manner.