Pakistan temporarily suspends mobile services nationwide for general elections
Pakistan’s ex-prime minister Nawaz Sharif changed tack and said he would seek to form a coalition government after his party trailed the independent candidates of rival Imran Khan in preliminary results following the country’s parliamentary election.
Mr Sharif had rejected the idea of a coalition a day earlier, saying he wanted a single party running Pakistan.
He claimed victory on Friday, but soon afterwards said: “We don’t have enough of a majority to form a government without the support of others and we invite allies to join the coalition so we can make joint efforts to pull Pakistan out of its problems.”
The lead of independent candidates backed by jailed former prime minister Imran Khan came as a surprise given claims by his supporters and a national rights body that balloting was manipulated to favour Mr Sharif.
Islamabad police have enforced a curfew in the capital banning public gatherings.
Election results were hit by long delays overnight, causing frustration and panic among voters who alleged it was due to ballot-rigging.
Independent candidates had secured around 91 seats, while Mr Sharif’s PML-N was behind with around 64.
Any party needs 133 seats in parliament for a simple majority but analysts believe the vote may not produce a clear winner.
Imran Khan’s party on course for stunning victory as its independents lead count
Jane Dalton9 February 2024 15:45
Pakistan gets first woman winner from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa city
Suriya Bibi is the first woman to secure victory in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Chitral city, reported Dawn.
Bibi is a Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-backed candidate and has won 18,914 votes in the region, according to the provisional results announced by the Election Commission of Pakistan.
She has defeated the JUI-F candidate Shakeel Ahmad.
Arpan Rai9 February 2024 15:30
Sharif says he wants coalition
Nawaz Sharif has admitted his party does not have the numbers to form government itself.
All parties in Pakistan should get together to form a government, he said.
In a change of tack, he said he would seek a coalition.
Jane Dalton9 February 2024 15:20
Khan-backed candidates on 86 seats
Independent candidates, most backed by Imran Khan, have won 86 out of 201 counted seats so far in the general election, according to the election body’s website.
Jane Dalton9 February 2024 15:17
Sharif’s PML party still struggling to win enought seats
Nawaz Sharif did not disclose how many seats his party had won after he claimed victory, and counting is still under way in the last few of the 265 seats that went to the polls.
The latest count published by the election panel showed his Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) winning 42 seats, much below the 133 mark needed to stake claim to form a government.
Mr Sharif said his deputies would meet other political parties later in the day to talk about forming a coalition government.
Jane Dalton9 February 2024 15:10
Sharif family bags all seats contested in safe city Lahore
The Sharif family contesting the Pakistan elections have won all seats contested in Lahore, according to the early results announced today.
While PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif won against a candidate backed by Imran Khan by a whopping 171,024 votes, his daughter Maryam Nawaz won the Punjab seat by 83,855 votes.
His younger brother Shehbaz Sharif, who briefly served as Pakistan’s prime minister, has won his Lahore seat by 105,960 votes.
Lahore has long been a political stronghold for the Sharif family, although Khan’s PTI made significant inroads in the city at the last election.
Arpan Rai9 February 2024 15:00
Sharif declares victory
Ex-prime minister Nawaz Sharif has declared victory in…
This article was originally published by a www.independent.co.uk . Read the Original article here. .