PML-N's Miftah Ismail wants a recount of votes cast in Karachi's NA-249 by-poll
By Muhammad JuniadPublished On 06 Jan 2023
- PML-N leader Miftah Ismail writes letter to chief election commissioner seeking vote recount for NA-249.
- In his letter, Ismail writes that presiding officers from 34 polling stations did not WhatsApp results.
- Ismail asks CEC to stop ECP from finalising results and recount votes in all polling stations of NA-249.
PML-N leader Miftah Ismail wants a recount of the votes cast during the April 29 by-election in Karachi's NA-249 constituency, in which PPP had claimed a victory.
Ismail wrote on Saturday a letter to the chief election commissioner seeking the vote recount in NA-249. Meanwhile, the PML-N has requested the Election Commission of Pakistan to conduct a forensic audit of the votes in the NA-249 constituency.
In his letter, Ismail wrote that presiding officers from 34 polling stations did not WhatsApp the results.
"We did not receive results from more than 30 polling stations. We have serious concerns about the behaviour of some presiding officers," Ismail wrote, adding that many Form 45s were not signed.
He said the returning officer is not following the law and not directing a recount of votes despite the minor difference in votes.
The PML-N candidate said that the counting of votes on Form 45 was different from the forms given to them by the RO. "We have not been provided Form 45 by the RO," he said.
He said in the letter that the RO did not provide the result summary according to the polling stations. He also said that the RO had not provided a receipt when asked when the WhatsApp results came in.
Ismail has asked the CEC to stop the ECP from finalising the results and recount votes in all polling stations of NA-249.
He also said that the RO has shown clear bias by rejecting all their requests as more than half of the Form 45s were not signed by the RO.
PPP leader Saeed Ghani, meanwhile, said the PML-N should apply to the ECP for a vote recount and use its legal right, just as PPP will use its legal right too.
NA-249 election results
The PPP secured victory in the NA-249 by-election held on Thursday in the city's District West, with unofficial, provisional results showing a close contest between the PML-N and PPP in the final count.
PPP's Abdul Qadir Mandokhel bagged 16,156 votes to win the seat, followed by PML-N's Miftah Ismail who secured 15,473, unofficial results from polling stations showed.
Both parties had claimed victory for their candidates mid-way into counting, capturing the attention of audiences awaiting results.
The PML-N pulled no punches in blaming the PPP for attempting to rig the result, saying they would not accept the result without challenging the ECP.
After the final count was announced, the PML-N's Maryam Nawaz said the election had been "stolen" from her party.
