MUZAFFARABAD: PPP leader and AJK Prime Minister Faisal Mumtaz Rathore has won the LA-17 Bagh-4 constituency in the third phase of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly elections, according to unofficial results.
Rathore secured 33,252 votes after results from all 199 polling stations were compiled, while PML-N’s Chaudhry Mohsin Aziz emerged as the runner-up.
Polling in the third phase was conducted across four constituencies in Bagh and Haveli districts of the Poonch division. The unofficial count showed the PPP leading in two seats, while the PML-N was ahead in one.
In LA-15 Bagh-2, PPP’s Zia Qamar led with 16,696 votes based on results from 203 of 213 polling stations. PML-N candidate Muhammad Mushtaq Ahmed Minhas followed with 15,099 votes.
The PML-N maintained its lead in LA-16 Eastern Bagh, where Sardar Mir Akbar Khan was ahead of PPP’s Sardar Qamar Zaman Khan.
The biggest upset was recorded in LA-14 Western Bagh, where independent candidate Sardar Sajid Iqbal Abbasi defeated former AJK premier and Muslim Conference president Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan in his home constituency. Abbasi secured 40,702 votes, compared with Attique Khan’s 19,542.
Re-Polling Set for 23 Polling Stations
AJK Election Commission Secretary Raja Shakeel Ahmed Khan announced that fresh polling will be conducted at 23 polling stations on August 15.
He said 14 polling stations in LA-15 and nine in LA-16 would go to the polls again after voting was disrupted by unrest.
Meanwhile, elections to five constituencies in Poonch and two in Sudhnoti have been postponed.
PML-N Challenges Bagh-4 Result
The electoral contest in LA-17 remained disputed as PML-N workers staged a sit-in outside the Returning Officer’s office, calling for a recount.
PML-N candidate Mohsin Aziz has submitted a formal recount request, but the Returning Officer turned it down. Aziz said the protest would continue until the votes are rechecked.
PPP Rejects Election Results
The PPP has also challenged the election process, alleging widespread rigging, polling irregularities, disruptions and law-and-order violations.
Speaking to the media, PPP leaders Palwasha Khan, Shahlah Raza and Sharmila Faruqui called for an impartial investigation into complaints, saying electoral transparency and the voters’ mandate must be protected.
Earlier, PPP Senator Sherry Rehman had criticised delays in the opening of polling stations in LA-15 and LA-16. She also alleged that PPP polling agents were barred from entering polling stations 119 and 120, raising concerns over the conduct of the vote.
