DASKA: The by-elections for NA-75 in Daska turned deadly as two people got killed and scores got injured during the firing and clashes between the rival parties Friday.
SACM Punjab Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan said during a presser that PML-N goons attacked two brothers, who were supporters of PTI, and killed them besides also injuring three others.
Zeeshan and Majid Khan were killed in an attack from the PML-N activists, she said adding that two others namely Tayyab, Haider and Sajid sustained injuries. The SACM Punjab said that the attackers would not be spared and would be brought to justice.
MS Civil Hospital Sialkot also confirmed the death of two people in the incident. Both the PML-N and PTI have blamed each other for creating a nuisance outside the polling station. This also led to the suspension of the polling process at some polling stations as Rangers were deployed to control the situation. The voting, which started peacefully, was later marred by complaints of rigging attempts and irregularities creating hindrance in the way of polling. The PML-N leaders have accused the government and the local authorities of attempts to slow down the polling process.
The people who made the video of the incident have claimed that PTI supporters were involved in the firing that led to the killing of two persons and injured 10 others.
The police have been accused of stopping people from voting and there was an argument between an SHO and PL-N candidate Nosheen Iftikhar who was denied entry in the polling station. In another video tweeted by a senior anchorperson, it can be seen that police were stopping women voters from casting their votes despite their insistence citing the firing incident.
The administration has called up additional police and Rangers for maintaining the security, law and order situation. In Waziradab too, clashes were reported between the rival parties and the police have to intervene at Sohdra's polling station no 149 to keep the situation under control during the by-election for PP-51. The police have arrested four PML-N workers.
Voting was underway in by-elections on two national and two provincial assembly seats in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Friday. A close contest is expected between Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz's (PML-N) Syeda Nausheen and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf's (PTI) Ali Asjad Malhi for NA-75 Daska, Sialkot. The seat had fallen vacant on account of the death of PML-N MNA Syed Iftikhar Shah.
The number of registered voters in the constituency is around 494,300 and 360 polling stations have been set up out of which 155 are declared sensitive and 25 are highly sensitive. Similarly, another close contest is expected between PML-N's Miss Talat Shaukat Manzoor and PTI's Chaudhry Muhammad Yousuf for PP-51 Wazirabad.
Nasir Kalyar of Jamaat-e-Islami and Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan's (TLP) Nasir Mehmood are also in the electoral arena. This seat had fallen vacant following the death of PML-N MPA Shaukat Manzoor Cheema. Meanwhile, PML-N leader Rana Sanaullah has said that the party will not accept the election results without Form 45. He has urged the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to ensure that each party's polling agents are present at the time of vote count.
PML-N's Ikhtiar Wali Khan, PTI's Mian Muhammad Umer, Awami National Party's Mian Wajahat and TLP's Mufti Sanaullah are contesting for PK-63 Nowshera. The seat had fallen vacant on account of the death of PTI MPA Mian Jamshed Kaka Khel.
The district administration has declared 39 polling stations as the most sensitive for the by-polls scheduled to be held in PK-63. 102 polling stations have been set up to facilitate 141,934 voters including 79,063 men and 62,871 women. Likewise, votes will be cast in by-elections on NA-45 district Kurram, KP.