Three candidates are contesting: Khurram Zeeshan, Irfan Saleem of PTI, opposition candidate Taj Muhammad Afridi
Voting has begun for the Senate seat vacated after the disqualification of Shibli Faraz. Three candidates are contesting: Khurram Zeeshan and Irfan Saleem of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) and opposition candidate Taj Muhammad Afridi.
Chief Minister Sohail Afridi was stuck in traffic on his way to the assembly and continued on foot, greeting and shaking hands with commuters along the way.
After casting his vote, Afridi told reporters that he was on his way to Adiala jail to meet PTI founder Imran Khan. Expressing confidence in the PTI’s stand in the provincial assembly, he said, “None of our MPAs have defected, from the Speaker’s choice to my own choice”.
He criticized the federal government for excluding Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa from discussions that directly affect the province. “Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is a stakeholder in the Pakistan-Afghanistan talks, but we were not taken into confidence,” he said. “Our position is that decisions about the province should not be made behind closed doors.”
Voting began at 9 am and will end at 4 pm. Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Provincial Election Commissioner Saeed Gul is serving as the Election Commissioner, while Joint Provincial Election Commissioner Muhammad Nadeem Khan, Deputy Director Media Coordination Sohail Ahmed, Deputy Director Elections Fahad Ali Shah and Deputy Director Law Muhammad Amjad are acting as election officers.
Read: Supreme Court refuses to delay Senate vote on Shibli Faraz’s seat
Re-election to the Senate seat
On Wednesday, the Supreme Court rejected a plea by Faraz to suspend the election and ruled that it would not interfere in the election process.
Earlier, a special anti-terrorism court in Faisalabad had sentenced PTI leaders Shibli Faraz and Omar Ayub to ten years in prison each for their alleged involvement in the May 9, 2023 riots that followed the arrest of Imran Khan.
The Election Commission of Pakistan disqualified nine PTI lawmakers, including Senate Opposition Leader Faraz and National Assembly Opposition Leader Ayub, following their verdict. Both initially challenged their disqualifications in the Peshawar High Court, but their petitions were dismissed as “not maintainable” as they had not surrendered before the court. They later appealed to the Supreme Court.
