ISLAMABAD: On Monday, electoral authorities began reviewing thousands of nomination papers in preparation for the upcoming general elections.
Although a total number has not yet been released by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), observers believe it to be in the thousands, covering more than 800 constituencies for national and provincial assemblies.
The returning officers (ROs) are in charge of the difficult task of carefully reviewing the nomination papers during the second phase of the election process. The time frame for this assessment is Monday through Saturday.
After then, until January 3, 2024, the decisions made by the ROs may be filed with appellate tribunals.In order to expedite the appellate procedure, the ECP formally announced the establishment of 24 appellate courts on Sunday.
These tribunals, which will be made up of judges and other judicial officers, will have the power to hear appeals and render decisions on them until January 10.
Numerous powerful politicians from different parties filed their nomination papers. Among the notable individuals were Nawaz Sharif, the head of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), and Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, the chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP).
The leader of the PML-N filed nomination papers for both NA-15 in Mansehra, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) and NA-130 in Lahore. Prominent candidates running in the same constituency include Azam Swati of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Mufti Kifayatullah of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F), and his son-in-law, Capt (retd) Safdar.
Along with 21 other candidates, Nawaz also handed his papers for NA-130 in Lahore on the day of submission. There, he would be up against Ahmad Khan of the PPP and Dr. Yasmin Rashid of the PTI.
For the three National Assembly seats, a total of 209 contenders filed their nomination papers in Islamabad, the federal capital. A whopping 270 candidates are vying for seven seats in the National Assembly in the twin city of Rawalpindi, while another 652 are running for 14 seats in the Punjab Assembly.
Renowned politicians from Rawalpindi, such as Speaker and former prime minister Raja Pervez Ashraf, Chaudhary Nisar Ali Khan, Sheikh Rashid, Ghulam Sarwar Khan, Hanif Abbasi, Malik Abrar, Chaudhary Daniyal, and Rashid Shafiq, are vying for reelection.
The number of legal professionals participating in this election cycle has increased significantly, with many entering the political sphere. Today, ten to fifteen lawyers are running for office in each constituency.
Former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi of Murree Tehsil is conspicuously absent from this election cycle, having opted not to file his nomination papers.
A total of 2,557 candidates from seven districts in Karachi filed nomination papers for 22 seats in the National Assembly and 47 seats in the Sindh Assembly in the southern province of Sindh. In addition, 552 people filed nomination papers in Hyderabad for six Sindh Assembly seats and three National Assembly seats.
The PPP, PML-N, MQM-P, TLP, JUI-F, JUP, and a number of independents are among the prominent political parties in Sindh that are actively engaged in the election process.While PML-N President Shahbaz Sharif presented his nomination form for a seat in the Keamari district, MQM-P Convener Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui submitted three papers from the Central district in Karachi. PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto filed for NA-194, Larkana-I, rather than from Karachi, as per his decision.
A total of 552 nomination papers for Sindh’s reserved seats were submitted to the ECP. Priority lists for reserved seats for women and minorities in national and local assemblies were submitted by different political parties. MQM provided 26 names, whereas the PPP submitted a list of 52 candidates.
Now let’s move on to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (K-P), where 53 nomination papers were submitted for seats designated for women. Mahmood Khan, the former chief minister, submitted candidature papers for PK-4 Swat as well as NA-2, NA-3, and NA-4 Swat general seats.
Sher Afzal Marwat, the leader of the PTI, and former federal minister Ghulam Ahmed Bilour presented nomination papers for the NA-32 seat in Peshawar. Sundal Khattak, a local TikTokker, filed her paperwork for a women’s reserved seat in the province capital to enter the election.
