TLP’s Shahzada Shahbaz takes lead in NA 240
One person was shot dead and 10 others were injured as violence erupted in Karachi on Thursday during the NA-240 (Korangi Karachi II) by-election, with competing political parties including Pak Sarzameen Party, Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan and Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan pointing fingers at each other. Police surgeon Dr Summaiya Syed confirmed that the casualties were brought to Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre from the Landhi area.
She said that one Saifuddin Kaleem was brought dead to JPMC and had suffered bullet injuries on his head. Some of the
injured were identified
as 18-year-old Waleed Qudrutullah with bullet injuries on his knee, Mohammed Idrees, 30, Khalid Chohan, 42, Salman Aslam, 35, Zeeshan Waris, 34, Aslam Ali, 35 and Nabeel Habib, 38, who suffered injuries on their head and other areas caused by hard and blunt instruments.
A spokesperson for the Edhi Foundation said that one of the injured, Iftikhar Alam, was shot at in the poll-related violence and transported to Liaquat National Hospital. He said Alam was a former MPA and a central PSP leader. The PSP alleged that its senior leaders and election office were attacked during polls. In a series of tweets, the PSP accused TLP workers of firing at its party chairman Syed Mustafa Kamal during a media talk. It added the party’s central leaders were also injured.
According to unofficial results from 299 of the total 309 polling stations, TLP’s Shahzada Shahbaz was leading with 10,272 votes, while MQM-P’s Abu Bakr was the runner-up with 10,261 votes.
Meanwhile, Election Commissioner Sindh has announced that final result would be announced tomorrow as polling was stopped in polling sation 51 due to violence.
“The MQM will no longer be allowed to win by stamping and rigging,” the spokesperson said. Meanwhile, MQM-P MPA Khawaja Izharul Hassan claimed that over 10 incidents of violence against his party’s workers took place during the by-election.
