On the grounds of maintainability, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) Wednesday dismissed identical applications seeking re-polling in Karachi’s National Assembly constituency NA-249. Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP) candidates moved the petitions in the ECP, alleging rigging in the NA-249 by-elections held on April 29. They pleaded with the ECP to declare the by-poll void and hold fresh by-election in the constituency. The ECP dismissed the petitions as non-maintainable and asked petitioners to invoke the proper forum jurisdiction which is election tribunal for remedy. On April 29, PPP’s Abdul Qadir Mandokhail won the election by securing 15,656 votes. PML-N’s Miftah Ismail was the runner-up with 14,747 votes. Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan’s Mufti Nazeer Kamalvi clinched third position with 11,125 votes, followed by Mustafa Kamal of the PSP who bagged 9,227 votes. Last month, the Election Commission conducted recounting of votes cast at the 276 polling stations of the NA-249 constituency, in which Mandokhail again emerged as winner. The recounting of votes was ordered on Miftah Ismail’s plea. When the vote recount began, the PML-N, PTI, PSP and MQM-P boycotted it over non-provision of Form 45 and 46.
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