Unsurprisingly, in a by-poll with a low turnout of 18.59 percent of voters in NA-133, the PML-N won back its seat, which had fallen vacant after the death of Pervez Malik and was contested this time around by his wife, Shaista Pervez Malik. The low turnout meant that Shaista Malik collected 46,811 votes, while the surprise came in the gains made by the PPP whose candidate Aslam Gill this time collected 32,313 votes. In 2018, the PPP had managed only 5500 votes. The PTI did not contest the poll, for what it calls technical reasons, with the PML-N claiming it had ‘run away’ from the contest. The TLP which last time round had finished in third place with 17,000 votes also chose not to contest claiming it had no time to prepare, given its long march for Islamabad.
The low turnout was perhaps lower than expected, but not altogether unexpected in a by-poll which traditionally turns out lower numbers of voters. Polling was generally enthusiastic and went ahead without a major skirmish though there were a few minor discords between supporters from either side. The PPP's gains – surprising for some but not that surprising for those keeping a close eye on alliances within Punjab – are probably a result of a mix of factors: the absence of the PTI and TLP; a proper effort by the PPP Punjab wing to get back its Punjab voter; and the rumoured support by other parties. Apart from the result, a look at the registered voters shows that there is still a wide disparity between men and women in terms of voter registration. In this constituency there were over 233,585 male registered voters whereas just 206,927 women had their name in the voter lists. A difference of over 25,000 voters makes it abundantly obvious that women are not enjoying their right to vote at par with men. This is something the Election Commission of Pakistan and all political parties should be focusing on in the next general elections. There is a need to register all women voters in each constituency of the country so that a large chunk of women voters are able to cast their votes.
The win, however, bolsters the opposition to some degree, proving that it is still a force to be reckoned with. The PDM alliance has announced an ‘inflation march’ to Islamabad – oddly in March – which is quite some time away. Inflation was also the main focus of the PML-N campaign. We now know that in Lahore at least things have not changed dramatically since 2018 as far as party positions go – though the PPP win could foretell larger alliance formations in the province. The PML-N though still remains the party with its roots buried in the city, even if there was less enthusiasm than before for the process of balloting itself. The gains in Lahore do show – predictably – that the Sharifs have not lost their hold over their home city and nor have their candidates. However, the opposition’s tactics are still all over the place – and there seems to be little focus on ‘what next’.