ISLAMABAD: There may be several coincidences in the recently-held general elections, and one of them is that in the first constituency of the National Assembly, NA-1, 133rd, NA-133 and last one NA-266, the voters’ turnout has been quite encouraging, over 50 per cent.
From NA-1, Upper Chitral-cum-Lower Chitral, Abdul Latif, an independent candidate emerged winner by pocketing 61834 votes and his closest opponent was Muhammad Talha Mehmood of JUi-Fazl, who got 42987 votes. The total valid polled votes were 162054 while 4755 were rejected and the turnout of voters was recorded at 53.2 per cent. Interestingly, starting from NA-1, the turnout witnessed an upward trend in the next two constituencies.
Similarly, from NA-133, Kasur-III, again, an independent contesting candidate Azeemud Din Zahid was elected by securing 130025 votes and Muhammad Ishaq was the runner-up with 119284 votes. In this constituency, a maximum 14001 votes were rejected, as compared to two other ones. The valid votes in
NA-133 were recorded at 315971, whereas the turnout was registered at 56.96
per cent. The last constituency of the National Assembly in Balochistan, NA-266, Qibla Abdullah-cum-Chaman, witnessed the highest turnout of 57 per cent. Here valid votes were 201394 and rejected ones were 926. The winner, veteran politician Mehmood Khan Achakzai of the Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party, pocketed 67028 and his closest opponent Salahuddin got 58439 votes.
