Our Correspondent
Gilgit
The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) on Friday secured a two-third majority in the Gilgit-Baltistan Legislative Assembly after six independent candidates announced to join the party.
It is pertinent to mention here that seven candidates secured success in the Gilgit-Baltistan polls as an independent candidate and six of them have so far joined the PTI, giving it the numbers in the legislative assembly to achieve the two-third majority in the house of 24 members.
A member of the GBLA, Haji Shah Baig, who secured a win on GB-15 Diamer-1 in the recently held polls, announced on Friday to join PTI.
The new induction rose the number of PTI members in the legislative assembly to 16 including the six independent candidates besides also having the support of the Majlis-e-Wahdatul Muslimeen, which secured a seat in the polls.
These included Wazir Muhammad Saleem (Skardu 3), Raja Nasir Ali Khan (Skardu 4), Mushtaq Hussain (Ghanche 1), Abdul Hameed (Ghanche 2), and Javaid Manwa from district Nagar.
After a detailed meeting with Federal Minister for Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit-Baltistan Ali Amin Gandapur and Saif Ullah Niazi, the Chief Organiser of the PTI here, four winners from Baltistan Division, and one from district Nagar announced to join the PTI and exhibited their full confidence in the policies of Prime Minister Imran Khan.
On the occasion, Ali Amin Gandapur said that for the development, prosperity, and peace of Gilgit-Baltistan, their services would be proved productive.
All the five winners said that they wanted to work for their constituencies and for the people of GB. On the other hand, PTI candidate Fatehullah Khan on Friday emerged victorious in a recount on the GBA-2 (Gilgit II) constituency.
Unofficial results shared by a returning officer put Khan ahead of PPP’s Jamil Ahmed by 96 votes. The recount was conducted after the PPP leader challenged the election result.
Gilgit-Baltistan Chief Election Commissioner Raja Shahbaz on Thursday lashed out at PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto, saying that the recently-held elections in the region were transparent.
Shahbaz, addressing a press conference, said: “[PPP chairman] Bilawal had been ranting about rigging the past one month […] What is rigging? is it a feather? a tail? What is it?”
The CEC said some parties were tarnishing the elections’ results, advising all candidates and stakeholders with grievances, who were busy speaking to the media, should approach the election tribunal instead.
He urged political leaders to refrain from making “baseless allegations” adding that such claims were not in the interest of the region and the people. “Elections have been transparent and impartial,” he added.
