Islamabad: The ruling party’s candidate, Ayaz Sadiq, was ahead of opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) nominee Aleem Khan, according to partial unofficial results in a crucial by-election held on Sunday in a National Assembly constituency in Lahore, capital of Punjab province.
With thousands of army troops deployed inside and around polling stations, the nine-hour voting concluded peacefully and there were no complaints of manipulation from any side.
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had asked for troop deployment, mainly on the demand of PTI, to ensure transparent and fair voting.
While the vote count was under way, unofficial results from 28 per cent of around 280 polling stations available by late evening showed that Ayaz Sadiq of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), former National Assembly speaker, was leading by a few thousand votes.
The by-poll followed the verdict by an election tribunal that in August annulled the election of Sadiq to the National Assembly from constituency NA-122 during the 2013 general elction, citing irregularities in the conduct of the polls.
In another by-election for the National Assembly held in Okara, also in Punjab, the stronghold of PML-N, an independent candidate, Riazul Haq, was leading against candidates of PML-N, PTI and other contestants, according to partial unofficial results.
