Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) are contesting in NA-122 and NA-144 constituencies on Sunday while political temperature of the country could not be higher.
Voting began on Sunday in a closely contested by-election in Lahore’s NA-122 and PP-147 constituencies, and Okara’s NA-144 seat.
The race for the parliamentary seat in Lahore pits the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) against the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
PML-N’s Sardar Ayaz Sadiq faces off with PTI candidate Aleem Khan in the NA-122 constituency of Lahore.
| Unoffical inconclusive Results of NA-122 By-election | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Party | No. of votes so far | |
| Abdul Aleem Khan | PTI |  |
55555 |
| Sardar Ayaz Sadiq | PML-N |  |
60222 |
| Barrister Amir Hasan | PPP |  |
712 |
There are some 347,762 registered voters in the constituency and balloting continued uninterrupted till 5pm. As many as 5,000 policemen were deployed at different polling stations to ensure trouble-free polling. They were assisted by 2,915 army troops.
Unofficial results show Sadiq in lead
10:40 PM: Ayaz Sadiq maintains lead with 60,222 votes in unofficial results, Sial News reports. On the contrary, Aleem Khan has received 55,555 votes.
PTI vs PML-N
A vociferous election campaign for NA-122 (Lahore V) marked by verbal duels between leaders of the ruling party and a leading opposition group ended on the night between Friday and Saturday, but the two sides took to social media to lure in voters hours before polling.
Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, a Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz candidate, had won the seat by defeating Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan in the 2013 parliamentary election. Imran, however, challenged Sadiq’s election, alleging electoral fraud in the constituency. After a marathon legal battle, Imran won the case when an election tribunal unseated Sadiq after finding irregularities in his election. On Sunday, Sadiq, who is hoping to regain the office of speaker National Assembly, will face Aleem Khan of PTI in a hotly contested by-election.
