ECP Faces Criticism Over Prolonged Election Result Delays

News Desk

Islamabad: While the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) initially assured a prompt announcement of election results, extended delays lasting for hours have stirred controversy, leading to skepticism from various political parties.

Nevertheless, the commission has now commenced the release of provisional results, alleviating uncertainty among the candidates.

According to the details, the tallying of votes is currently in progress following the participation of millions of Pakistanis, among the 128 million eligible voters, who cast their votes on Thursday to choose their representatives.

This occurred amidst a nationwide internet and mobile shutdown, sporadic political violence, and a fatal terror attack in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.

A total of 17,816 candidates, both independent and affiliated with political parties, contested for 265 National Assembly, 296 Punjab Assembly, 130 Sindh Assembly, 113 Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP), and 51 Balochistan seats, making it a cumulative total of 855 seats.

The elections, marking the largest-ever in the country’s history, hold significant importance for Pakistan’s uncertain socioeconomic and political future, given the challenging economic and security conditions, coupled with what can be considered an unprecedented level of political polarization.

Leading up to the polls, there was a notable increase in terrorist attacks, particularly in Balochistan and KP, contributing to the heightened tensions. Despite a cowardly terrorist attack on police in DI Khan resulting in the tragic loss of four officers, the actual polling day itself remained relatively calm, with no major violent incidents reported across the nation.

Controversy arose in the eleventh hour with a government decision that raised doubts about the transparency, fairness, and freedom of the polls—the suspension of mobile and internet services nationwide.

This move faced strong criticism from figures such as PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, JIP Emir Hafiz Naeem Ur Rehman, independent candidate Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar, and others.

Expressing intense displeasure at the sudden suspension of mobile services, the PPP chief went to the extent of writing to the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP), Qazi Faez Isa, urging him to take notice and enforce the 2018 orders of the Islamabad High Court (IHC), which prohibited the suspension of these services on polling day.

Despite the controversy, the polling process proceeded, with citizens converging outside the 90,675 polling stations to cast their votes, and the voting concluded at 5 pm.

Based on the unofficially announced results thus far, prominent political figures from influential parties, such as Amir Maqam and Maulana Fazl Ur Rehman, have encountered significant setbacks against independent candidates in KP.

The election outcomes have caused dissatisfaction among leading political parties in various regions of the country.

This is a developing story and changes are likely.