If the preliminary and unofficial results of the urban election are correct, Pakistan Peoples Party’s arrow appears to have hunted the peacock, a symbol that Pakistan Tehreek-E-Insaf’s Lal Malhi competed as an independent candidate on NA-213 Umerkot.

One at an election campaign unfolded in the constituency on Thursday between PPP’s Saba Talpur and Malhi, which was also supported by the great Democratic Alliance, the nationalist parties, Jamati-U-Islam-Fazl and many other smaller political units.

However, the initial and unconfirmed results of 498 polling stations have set the independent candidate, pulling far behind Talpur with a gap of about 74,000 votes. Talpur was investigated around 148,965 votes against Malhis 74,515 votes.

NA-213 became vacant after the decline of PPP’s Nawab Yousuf Talpur, man to Saba Talpur, February 19th. He was elected to MNA from this area for six terms of parliament from 1993 to 2024 in addition to winning a provincial assembly seat in 1977.

Malhi at a press conference held immediately after the end of the election process announced a shutter down in Umerkot until Friday in response to what he is alleged to be a rigged election process. He demanded that the result of the election be withheld until a free and fair investigation in the way the alleged obvious rigging has been performed can be performed.

“Force, false votes, government machines, partisan polling staff and violence were used to get the votes,” he claimed.

Interestingly, PPP also accused PTI’s Malhi of rigging and violence. MPA Nawab Taimur Talpur, the candidate’s son, claimed that PPP’s workers were assaulted and wounded at the Numer 261 election at Jamal Makhrani by PTI’s workers.

“Our brothers from the OAD Hindu community were attacked.” He also produced the wounded workers before the media. “PTI had sensed defeat, and its workers then resorted to violence.” He claimed he wants to make sure the police brought the guilty to the book.

Supporters of the two parties also engaged in a fight at PS Shehwani Mohalla, but police later managed to spread them. A heated argument and exchange of hot words between the two sides also occurred on another PS in Bustan, but in a timely manner prevented the action of the police from flaring up.

The independent candidate during his visit to the PS Ibrahim crust complained that PPP’s UC President Ameer Hussain Khaskheli affected the polishing process.

On his complaint, police made him leave PS, but only after Malhi and Khaskheli had exchanged some warm words. The voting process was temporarily suspended by PS Qazi Sultan Higher Secondary School.

In the evening, thousands of supporters of PTI, GDA and other parties held a protest in Umerkot calling for an independent investigation into the election process.

As many as 608,997 people were registered to vote in the constituency, where some 18 candidates contested the seat, but the real clash happened between only two of them. About 1,816 polling rooms were established in 498 polling stations. The Pakistan Election Commission had declared 91 PS as very sensitive and 269 sensitive. More than 4,200 policemen were deployed in addition to rangers staff.