Two former PoK premiers lost their strongholds in the third phase of elections marred by violence and rigging allegations, as the PML-N emerged dominant
Polling in the remaining seven constituencies was postponed over concerns about the law-and-order situation and is expected to be held on August 21, according to the region’s election commission. The seat had been held by the Muslim Conference/PML-N since 1985. The party has secured 25 of the 45 directly elected seats so far, while the PPP has won 12 and the Awami Dast-o-Bazu Party one. The group has alleged that more than 40 people were killed during violence surrounding the first phase of voting and that around 400 protesters had been killed since the protests began.
Former prime minister and Muslim Conference president Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan, who was backed by the PML-N, lost the seat in Western Bagh’s Dhirkot constituency to Awami Dast-o-Bazu Party candidate Sardar Sajid Iqbal, according to unofficial results.
Just days before the final phase of voting, Pakistan’s defence minister Khawaja Asif had described the protesters as “enemies of Pakistan” and ruled out talks with them. But Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s adviser Rana Sanaullah subsequently said 99% of those associated with the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) were “patriotic brothers”, promising that a PML-N government would engage with the group and seek to resolve its demands. The Pakistani government has rejected the higher figure as exaggerated, while Sanaullah has acknowledged that deaths from the unrest were in the “double figures”.
The election comes against the backdrop of a striking shift in the Pakistani government’s treatment of the protest movement that has rocked PoK for months. The reversal in rhetoric came as the PML-N emerged as the dominant force in the election and prepared to form the next government in the region. Two former so-called prime ministers of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) lost their traditional strongholds in the third phase of elections, according to unofficial results released on Tuesday, while incumbent premier Faisal Mumtaz Rathore of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) retained his seat. The latest results came after voting in four constituencies on Monday, with the election process again overshadowed by violence and allegations of rigging.