4 seats go to PPP, one each to PMLN, JUI-F in Senate by-polls

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) secured four out of six Senate seats in the by-election on Thursday.

The elections on six vacated seats were held in the federal capital, Sindh Assembly and Balochistan Assembly. The PPP got two seats from Sindh and one each from Balochistan and the federal capital. The ruling coalition bagged five seats, including four of PPP (Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani from the federal capital, Aslam Abro, Saifullah Dharijo from Sindh and Abdul Quddus), one of PMLN and one of JUI-F from Balochistan.

Gilani defeated the Sunni Ittehad Council’s candidate Chaudhary Ilyas Mehrban. According to unofficial results, out of a total of 301 votes polled, Gilani bagged 204 votes, while his rival Chaudhry Ilyas Mehrban received 88 votes. Nine votes were rejected. The seat fell vacant following the victory of Gilani as MNA from Multan in Feb 8 general elections.

Apart from this, 124 votes were cast in the Sindh Assembly out of which one vote was rejected. The PPP candidates Aslam Abro and Saifullah Dharijo were elected as senators by securing 57 votes and 58 votes, respectively. Shazia Sohail and Nazirullah of Sunni Unity Council got 4 and 4 votes, respectively.

According to the unofficial results of three Senate seats from the Balochistan Assembly, PPP’s Quddus Bizenjo won 23 votes, Muslim League-N’s Dostain Domki won 17 votes and Jamiat Ulema Islam-F’s Shakur Ghibzai secured 16 votes.

Meanwhile, a total of 301 votes were cast in the National Assembly, out of which nine votes were rejected. According to sources, out of nine votes rejected, one vote belonged to the PTI-backed SIC’s Ilyas Mehraban and eight votes were of Yusuf Raza Gilani.

PPPP’s Syed Nayyer Hussain Bukhari congratulated Yusuf Raza Gilani, Saifullah Dharijo, Aslam Abro, Quddus Bizenjo, Dostain Domki and Abdul Shakur Ghibzai. He also congratulated President Asif Ali Zardari and Chairman PPP Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on the election of the party’s senators.