Polling concludes in NA-168 Bahawalpur by-election

The voting process concluded peacefully in the by-poll for Bahawalpur’s NA-168 constituency on Sunday. PML-N’s candidate Malik Munir Iqbal Channar and independent candidate Wali Dad Cheema were the main contenders in a tight race. The seat became vacant following the death of Malik Muhammad Iqbal Channar, Channar’s son now representing the ruling party.

Polling commenced at 8am and concluded at 5pm. Election Commission spokesperson Huda Gohar informed Dawn that voters within the polling station boundaries were permitted to vote past 5pm as well. The voting process remained largely peaceful across the constituency. However, at a polling station in Akhtarabad, balloting was briefly disrupted due to a brawl between voters, caused by alleged harassment of election staff by political workers.

The Provincial Election Commissioner Control Room swiftly intervened, and the district returning officer (DRO) and returning officer (RO) managed to restore order with the assistance of police. The matter has since been resolved, and polling continues as usual. According to the provincial election commissioner's office, the constituency has 483,143 registered voters, comprising 248,259 men and 234,614 women across 292 polling stations.

At these polling stations, 307 presiding officers and 941 polling officers and assistant presiding officers have been deployed. The day before the by-poll, the Punjab Home Department had requested the federal interior ministry to deploy troops of the army and Rangers (Punjab) in the constituency to ensure a smooth, peaceful, and secure conduct of the election.

Prior to the by-poll, three individuals were injured on September 12 in an armed clash during Cheema's election rally in Baqirpur, when some supporters of the rival candidates resorted to firing, resulting in injuries.