Polling underway across Sindh for local govt by-polls

Polling is currently underway for local government by-elections in 14 districts across Sindh.

The polling process began at 8am and will continue till 5pm in Karachi, Sukkur, Ghotki, Khairpur, Jacobabad, Larkana, Shaheed Benazirabad and Naushahro Feroze.

In a notification issued today, the Election Commission of Pakistan said polling is underway on 21 seats for which 14 district returning officers and 20 returning officers have been appointed.

According to the electoral body, 163 polling stations have been set up across Sindh. Seventy-two of the polling stations have been declared ‘highly sensitive’ and 89 ‘sensitive’. As many as 616 polling booths have been established — 312 for males and 304 for women.

In Karachi, the commission said, 121 polling stations have been set up. Forty-two of the polling stations have been declared ‘highly sensitive’ and 79 ‘sensitive’.

Provincial Election Commissioner Ejaz Anwar Chohan has directed all relevant authorities to ensure polls are held in a free and fair manner.

The ECP has also established a control room to monitor the election process.

Murtaza Wahab faces JI, TLP candidates

In Karachi, 54 candidates are contesting on nine vacant seats. Among the candidates, Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab and his deputy Salman Murad of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) are contesting the by-elections in nine union committees (UCs) in five of the seven districts of Karachi — Malir, South, Central, East and Keamari — for UC chairmen, vice chairmen and four general members.

Wahab had first filed nomination papers for the office of UC chairman on three seats in UC-13 Saddar Town, UC-3 Mauripur Town and UC-8 Ibrahim Hyderi but he returned unopposed from UC-8 after Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) contestant’s papers were rejected and PTI contender withdrew her nomination papers.

The mayor and his deputy, who had not taken part in the Jan 15 LG polls, are now contesting the by-polls in an attempt to meet legal requirements for staying in their current offices.

Now, the mayor is contesting from his home UC (UC-13, Kehkashan Clifton) against six other contenders, including three independent candidates, However, JI’s Noor-ul-Islam, Sikandar Agar of Tehreek Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) and Syed Obaidullah Shah of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl are being touted as his main rivals.

The deputy mayor is also contesting by-polls for chairman’s seat from his native UC-7 (Gadap, Malir) against JI’s Ayub Khaskheli, TLP’s Salim Ahmed and Abdul Hafeez Jokhio of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf.

PPP’s Saleem Memon, PTI’s Mir Mohibullah and Maqbool Ahmed of TLP are also in the run for the seat of vice chairman in the same UC.

Six contenders are fighting it out with each other for the slot of chairman of UC-3 Mauripur. They are PPP’s Saifullah, Mohammad Zahid of PTI, JI’s Mohammad Hussain and Mohammad Zahid Iqbal of PML-N.

PPP’s Hamid Hussain, Imtiaz Khan of JI, Gulwaiz Khan of PML-N, PTI’s Mohammad Tahir and Atif Qadri of TLP are the main contenders for the office of vice chairman in UC-12 (Boat basin, Saddar Town).

For the slot of vice chairman UC-6 (Nanakwara, Saddar Town), PTI’s Mansoor Ahmed Shaikh and Mohammad Shahrukh of TLP, in addition to four independents, are in the fray.

Twenty candidates of different political parties are in the run for four seats of general member from ward-4 of UC-I Gadap Town, ward-3 of UC-2 Malir, ward-4 of UC-6 Jinnah Town in East district and ward-3 of UC-5 Nazimabad Town.

Earlier, Sindh police said that they had devised a security plan for the LG by-elections under which thousands of policemen were being deployed across the province while a quick response force would also remain on standby to deal with any untoward incident during the polls.