RO postpones election in PK-78

PESHAWAR: The returning officer on Wednesday terminated the election proceedings for the provincial assembly constituency PK-78 after the death of Awami National Party (ANP) candidate Haroon Bilour.

Returning Officer Ubaidullah issued the public notice under Section 73 of the Election Act 2017 to postpone the election. The notice said the election proceedings for PK-78 stood terminated till further orders due to the death of Haroon Bilour.

Suhail Ahmad, spokesperson for the provincial Election Commission, said that a new schedule would be issued for the election in the constituency. On Tuesday, ANP candidate for PK-78 Haroon Bilour was martyred along with 13 other people in a suicide attack at a corner meeting at Yakatoot locality in the Peshawar city.

The death toll from the blast climbed to 20 when six injured breathed their last. Meanwhile, the legal fraternity across the province observed boycott of courts to protest the killing of the Awami National Party leader and others. The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Bar Council had given the call for strike.