Polling underway in NA-168 Bahawalpur by-election
BAHAWALPUR: Polling was underway on Sunday in the NA-168 Bahawalpur by-poll, with a close contest expected between PML-N’s Malik Munir Iqbal Channar and independent candidate Wali Dad Cheema. Polling began at 8am and is expected to conclude at 5pm. Spokesperson for the Election Commission of Pakistan, Huda Gohar, told Dawn that voters present within the boundaries of the polling station will be…
Polling commenced on Sunday for the NA-168 Bahawalpur by-election, with PML-N's Malik Munir Iqbal Channar and independent candidate Wali Dad Cheema locked in a tight race. The voting process is slated to conclude at 5pm, although individuals within the polling station boundaries may continue casting their ballots beyond this time. Huda Gohar, a spokesperson for the Election Commission of Pakistan, made this announcement to Dawn.
The seat became vacant following Malik Muhammad Iqbal Channar's passing in August, with his son, Malik Munir Iqbal Channar, now representing the PML-N. According to figures from the provincial election commissioner's office, there are 483,143 registered voters in the constituency, comprising 248,259 men and 234,614 women spread across 292 polling stations. At these stations, 307 presiding officers, 941 polling officers, and 941 assistant presiding officers have been assigned.
One day prior to the by-election, the Punjab Home Department had requested the federal interior ministry to deploy troops from the army and Rangers (Punjab) to ensure a smooth, peaceful, and secure electoral process. Three individuals were injured on September 12 during an armed clash at Baqirpur, which erupted during Cheema's election rally between supporters of rival candidates. Some participants resorted to firing, leading to the injuries suffered by the three individuals, as reported by Rescue 1122 sources.
Written by urgent.news from Dawn's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
