The Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz), according to unofficial results, won the by-election for Punjab Assembly’s PP-52 (Sambrial) constituency, retaining the seat that had fallen vacant after the death of Chaudhry Arshad Javed Warraich.
Unofficial and unverified results suggested PMLN candidate Hina Arshad Warraich secured the seat with 78,702 votes against the 40,037 votes of runner-up Fakhir Nashat Ghumman, backed by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
Polling commenced at 8 a.m. and continued until 5 p.m. across 185 polling stations. The polls were largely peaceful though there were scattered reports of workers of opposing parties clashing and shouting slogans against each other. As per the norm in Pakistan, the defeated parties have alleged rigging, with the winning party urging them to avail legal avenues to prove their claims.
In separate messages, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif congratulated Hina Arshad Warraich on her victory in the PP-52 by-election. Nawaz said Warraich’s victory was an expression of the people’s confidence in her government’s policies, adding the public had backed those who serve them against those who spread sedition and mischief.
The prime minister, meanwhile, thanked the people of Sialkot for reposing trust in the PMLN.
Rigging allegations
Coinciding with the close of polls—and before votes were finishing counting—PTI spokesperson Sheikh Waqas Akram alleged rigging in a press conference, maintaining his party was in the lead. He alleged that the PTI’s polling agents were forced out of polling stations, accusing the PMLN of using “state machinery” to rig the polls. He alleged his party had “video evidence” of its allegations, though the same has not yet been made public.
He also slammed the placing of shipping containers outside the office of the returning officer, which the government defended as necessary for security. Local administrators also maintained the office remained open despite the containers, saying there was no attempt at rigging.
The container’s placement was also criticized by the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), which trailed a distant third according to the unofficial results. PPP leader Raja Pervaiz Ashraf further alleged several polling stations were closed early by the administration, which denied the claims.
In a statement rubbishing the rigging allegations, Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari maintained the victory was evidence of the people of Punjab supporting the governance of Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz.