The scrutiny of nomination papers for the Senate election has commenced in Karachi and is set to conclude today, March 19. A total of 35 candidates, representing various political parties including the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), MQM-P, and independents, have submitted their nomination papers for the 12 Senate seats from Sindh. Under the supervision of Returning Officer Sharifullah, the scrutiny process is underway at the RO office, with candidates such as MQM-P’s Rauf Siddiqui and independent candidate Faisal Vawda presenting their nomination papers for examination. Of the 35 candidates, 21 have filed papers for general seats, six for women’s reserved seats, five for technocrats’ seats, and three for the minorities’ reserved seat.
According to the election schedule, appeals against the approval or rejection of nomination papers can be filed until March 21, with the election tribunals expected to decide on appeals by March 25. A revised list of candidates will be published on March 26, and candidates have until March 27 to withdraw their nomination papers. The Senate election, scheduled for April 2, will take place in national and provincial assemblies.
The PPP, Sindh’s ruling party, has nominated candidates for all vacant Senate seats from the province, including Sarmad Ali and Barrister Zameer Ghumro for the technocrat seats, Quratul Ain Marri and Rubina Qaimkhani for women’s reserved seats, and Poonjo Mall Bheel for the minority seat. Additionally, Sarfaraz Rajjar, Ashraf Jatoi, Masroor Ahsan, Nadeem Bhutto, Dost Ali Jaiser, and Kazim Shah have been named as the party’s candidates for general Senate seats.
