PoK Polls: Zero Votes Cast At Multiple Booths Amid Election Boycott
Among the constituencies contested was the Bagh-4 seat in Haveli district, where current PoK Prime Minister Faisal Mumtaz Rathore ran as the candidate for the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP).
Voting concluded across four assembly seats in the Bagh and Haveli districts of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) under the shadow of widespread election boycott protests. While numerous polling stations remained completely deserted, voting was largely confined to designated high-profile booths.
Among the constituencies contested was the Bagh-4 seat in Haveli district, where current PoK Prime Minister Faisal Mumtaz Rathore ran as the candidate for the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP).
Zero Votes Cast At Multiple Stations
Following the conclusion of polling at 5:30 PM, vote counting commenced immediately. An exclusive copy of the official result sheets accessed by ABP News reveals that several polling stations in the Bagh-2 constituency recorded a complete blackout, with not a single vote cast throughout the day. Specifically, in the Malot area, Polling Station-114 at the Boys Primary School saw zero votes, while in Bara Bari, both the Government Boys High School and the Bara Bari West School booths reported a total boycott by local voters.
Violence And Street Protests
The voting process was marred by violence as workers from Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s party, the PML(N), clashed with Bilawal Bhutto’s PPP activists over allegations of booth capturing. Simultaneously, residents in Bagh took to the streets, demonstrating against the Pakistani administration and voicing strong support for the election boycott.
In the ongoing vote counting across four seats in PoK, Sajid Iqbal of the Awami Dast-o-Baju Party secured a victory in Bagh-1 by defeating former PoK Prime Minister and Muslim Conference chief Sardar Attique Khan. Meanwhile, incumbent Prime Minister Faisal Mumtaz Rathore of the PPP maintains a lead in Bagh-4, with party colleague Zia-ul-Qamar also leading in Bagh-2, while Sardar Mir Akbar Khan of the PML-N remains ahead in Bagh-3.
The PML(N) has already crossed the majority threshold in the earlier phases of the PoK elections. The Election Commission is set to release the official figures for these four seats by Tuesday afternoon. Attention now turns to the remaining seven seats, as authorities decide whether to proceed with polling amidst persistent unrest or wait until peace and stability is re-established in the Poonch and Sudhnoti region of PoJK
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