Imran Khan's Party-Backed Independent Candidates Secure Majority in Pakistan's General Elections

Defense News ,Pakistan :- The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has officially declared the final results of Thursday's general elections, revealing an unusual delay that has raised concerns and led to accusations of foul play by several parties. Independent candidates, largely backed by the incarcerated former prime minister Imran Khan's party, emerged victorious with 101 seats out of the 265 contested in the National Assembly.

The ECP withheld the results of one constituency, NA 88 in Khushab, Punjab, due to complaints of fraud, promising to announce the outcome after addressing the grievances. Additionally, the election for one seat was postponed following the death of a candidate.

Independent candidates, predominantly supported by Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), secured 101 seats, making them the leading force in the National Assembly. The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), led by three-time former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, secured 75 seats, technically becoming the single largest party in Parliament. The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) of Bilawal Zardari Bhutto claimed 54 seats, while the Muttahida Qaumi Movement Pakistan (MQM-P), representing Urdu-speaking people who migrated from India during partition, secured 17 seats. Smaller parties collectively won the remaining 12 seats.

To form a government, a party must attain 133 seats out of the 265 contested seats in the National Assembly. A simple majority, requiring 169 seats out of a total of 336, including reserved slots for women and minorities, will be decided later.

While complete results for the provincial assemblies of Punjab, Sindh, and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa have been announced, pending results for three constituencies of the Balochistan assembly add to the overall uncertainty. In Punjab's 296 contested seats, independents claimed 138 seats, closely followed by PML-N with 137, while other parties secured 21 seats. In Sindh's 130 contested seats, results for 129 were announced, with a re-poll ordered in one constituency due to corruption. Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa witnessed results for 112 out of 113 seats, with the outcome for one seat being withheld.

Earlier, elections on two seats were postponed due to the unfortunate deaths of the candidates before the election day. The delayed results and allegations of irregularities cast a shadow on the transparency of the electoral process, prompting calls for investigations and corrective measures.