Pakistan: Poll body dismisses ex-PM Nawaz Sharif's plea to cancel notification of winner from constituency he lost

The Pakistan Election Commission rejected a request from former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to halt the notification of the winning candidate in a Punjab province constituency where he was defeated by an independent candidate supported by ex-Prime Minister Imran Khan’s party, a media report stated. During the hearing, a two-member bench of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), led by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja, dismissed the plea and instructed Nawaz Sharif’s representative to submit the application again, as reported by ARY News. The independent candidate supported by Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Shahzada Gustasap Khan, secured victory in the NA-15 Mansehra seat with 105,249 votes. Meanwhile, Nawaz Sharif, a three-time former prime minister and leader of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), came in second with 80,382 votes. During the hearing, a two-member bench of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), led by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja, dismissed the plea and instructed Nawaz Sharif’s representative to apply again, as reported by ARY News. The independent candidate supported by Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Shahzada Gustasap Khan, secured victory in the NA-15 Mansehra seat with 105,249 votes. Meanwhile, Nawaz Sharif, a three-time former prime minister and leader of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), came in second with 80,382 votes. Following defeat in the constituency, Nawaz Sharif challenged the victory notification of Gustasap, according to the report. The returning officer, in the report submitted to the ECP, stated that the result of the constituency had been compiled as per Form 45, according to a report in The Express Tribune newspaper. Nawaz Sharif, 74, contested the February 8 polls from two constituencies. Apart from the NA-15, he also contested from the NA-130 constituency in Lahore which he won by 59,000 votes. On Thursday, Nawaz Sharif’s counsel urged the election body not to reject his client’s plea, to which ECP directed him to apply again. The development came amidst Nawaz Sharif’s younger brother and former prime minister Shehbaz Sharif, 72, is expected to become the premier after a post-poll alliance of leading political parties led by the two brothers struck a deal with other parties to form a coalition government after last week’s elections resulted in a hung Parliament. None of the three major parties, the PML-N, the Pakistan People’s Party, or the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf have won the necessary seats in the February 8 general elections to secure a majority in the National Assembly and, therefore, will be unable to form a government on their own. With inputs from PTI.