Imran Khan renews his call for early elections after stunning by-election win
Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s party has swept crucial by-elections in Punjab, the country’s most populous and bellweather province.
The win is seen as a big blow to Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif’s ruling coalition and an indicator of the rising popularity of Imran Khan who was ousted in a parliamentary vote of no-confidence in April.
Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party won 15 seats out of 20 in the provincial assembly of Punjab. The ruling Pakistan Muslim League won four seats as did one independent candidate, according to preliminary results.
Pakistan’s election commission ordered by-elections after disqualifying 20 members of Khan’s party from constituencies in Punjab changed their loyalties and supported Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s son Hamza Shehbaz for the Chief Minister’s Office.
Hamza was elected as Punjab chief minister in May, however, the Lahore High Court ordered to hold fresh elections for the Chief Minister’s Office after the by-elections.
Khan calls for early elections
Imran Khan has renewed his call for early elections after the stunning by-election upset that saw his party win the crucial polls in the Punjab assembly.
“The only way forward from here is to hold fair and free elections under a credible ECP (Election Commission of Pakistan). Any other path will only lead to greater political uncertainty & further economic chaos,” Khan tweeted.
Khan has been pressing Sharif to hold early general elections ever since the ouster of his government in a no-trust vote. He terms the Sharif administration an “imported government” imposed on Pakistan by the alleged Washington-led conspiracy.
The only way forward from here is to hold fair & free elections under a credible ECP. Any other path will only lead to greater political uncertainty & further economic chaos.
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) July 17, 2022
PMLN concedes defeat
PML-N vice president, Maryam Nawaz, the daughter of Nawaz Sharif, conceded the defeat, which is seen as a significant setback for the ruling party in its home ground.
“Defeat and victory are part of elections. We must accept this (fact) wholeheartedly,” Maryam Nawaz said in a Twitter post, urging the party to accept the defeat “with an open heart.”