[🇵🇰] Pakistan General Elections -- 2024

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‘That time of fear has passed’: PTI’s Asad Qaiser​

PTI leader Asad Qaiser has condemned the raid on the residence of their presidential candidate Mahmood Khan Achakzai.

Speaking on the floor of the National Assembly, Qaiser said, “A message was given that if someone makes a speech in the NA, his result will be this.”

“I want to make this clear; that time of fear has passed. We have come out of all situations,” the PTI MNA said while referring to the crackdown against the party during the past year.

Recalling his struggle of “29 years” in the PTI, Qaiser said that his party founder Imran Khan has decided to “remain in the country and face the circumstances”.

“Neither our leader will bow down, nor will we,” he added.

Asad Qaiser speaks in NA.

 

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Ruckus in NA as speaker warns of action against PTI’s Jamshaid Dasti​

At one point during today’s NA session, Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq warned of taking against PTI MNA Jamshed Dasti.

The warning followed after PPP’s Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said, “If you think the people of Pakistan are a fool, then you are wrong. We all know that someone on purpose printed that alleged copy of the cipher.”

“If I violate the Constitution, then have me punished 100 times, but if someone from that side violates the Constitution, then have them punished,” he said while referring to the opposition.

Sloganeering and ruckus were once again seen during today’s NA session as Bilawal continued with his fiery speech.

Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq chairs the NA session

 

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ECP rejects SIC's plea for reserved seats in NA​

Updated Mar 04,
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Monday rejected the application of the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) for reserved seats for women and minorities in the National Assembly.

The SIC, a party backed by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), sought these seats through an application that stirred controversy and led to a prolonged deliberation by the electoral body.

A five-member bench, presided over by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja, reached a 4-1 verdict, declaring that the Sunni Ittehad Council is not entitled to reserved seats in the National Assembly.

The ECP maintained that these seats would be distributed among other political parties based on their proportional representation. The commission emphasised that reserved seats in the assemblies cannot be left vacant.

However, it's worth noting that ECP Punjab member Babar Hassan Bharwana dissented from the majority decision, expressing disagreement with the allocation of reserved seats to other political parties.

 

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Achakzai says house raided for 'seeking parliament's supremacy'​

Updated Mar 04,
Speaking during the newly convened session of the 16th National Assembly, Mahmood Khan Achakzai, head of the Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) and presidential candidate, said his house was raided for seeking to uphold the supremacy of Parliament.

The PkMAP chief took the floor after PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto requested the NA speaker to allow Achakzai to address the session before him.

The PkMAP alleged on Sunday that the police raided the house of its party chief and presidential candidate Mahmood Khan Achakzai without justification and arrested his personal guard.

Addressing a press conference at the party's central secretariat in Quetta, PkMAP Central Secretary General Abdul Rahim Ziaratwal said that a heavy police contingent raided the house of the party chief “without any magistrate" in violation of the people’s right to privacy, according to a BBC report.

He added that the police also arrested a personal guard of Achakzai’s, who was in possession of a licensed weapon. The PkMAP leader alleged that the raid came after Achakzai exposed rigging in the recent elections and the people responsible for it in a National Assembly session.

 

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Shehbaz sees off outgoing PM after farewell guard of honour​

Mar 04,
A sharply dressed contingent representing all three services extended a farewell guard of honour to the departing Caretaker Prime Minister, Anwaarul Haq Kakar on Monday.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif bid him farewell following the ceremonial guard of honour and a concluding meeting with the staff of the Prime Minister's Office.

 

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PTI to challenge ECP verdict on reserved seats​

Mar 04,
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has decided to challenge the decision of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) in the Supreme Court, which denied reserved seats for women and minorities to the Sunni Ittehad Council in the National Assembly.

In his address during a Senate session following the verdict, PTI’s Barrister Ali Zafar said that the ECP’s decision is a stab in the back of democracy. He emphasised that it is the responsibility of the National Assembly and provincial assemblies to elect senators, the president, the prime minister, and the chairman Senate, and incomplete assemblies cannot fulfil these elections.

 

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Bilawal calls on PM to take notice of raid at Mahmood Achakzai’s house​

Updated Mar 04, 2024
In his first address to the 16th National Assembly, PPP leader Bilwal Bhutto condemned on Monday last night’s raid at PkMAP chief and opposition’s presidential nominee Mahmood Khan Achakzai’s house in Quetta.

He called on prime minister-elect Shehbaz Sharif to have the raid investigated, stating that the presidential election was being made unnecessarily controversial.

Bilwal then requested NA Speaker Ayaz Sadiq to allow Achakzai to speak before him.

Sadiq said he was unaware of the raid and said he would speak to the Balochistan chief minister if something like this has happened. He then allowed the PkMAP chief to take the floor.

 

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Not to laugh

Shebaz vows to eliminate terrorism​

Mar 04
The newly-elected premier further said that perpetrators of the May 9 riots will not be forgiven, vowing action against all those who were involved in the riots.

Shehbaz also promised to end terrorism in the country and address its root causes. He said the aim of his government is to take the National Action Plan (NAP) forward.

Referring to the economy, Shehbaz said that the incoming government would bring investment in to the country and creat economic conditions to spur growth, emphasising that "one window" export zones will be established in all provinces.

 

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'We will rise'​

Mar 03,
The newly-elected premier said Pakistan is facing an alarming debt crisis, and vowed to make Pakistan "self-sufficient". “But if we decide to do a deep surgery and bring changes in the system, basic reforms, and I do not doubt that Nawaz Sharif, Asif Ali Zardari and others will agree that we can either get rid of a life of debt or we move forward in shame."

"We will rise and we will make Pakistan self-sufficient," said Shehbaz.

He maintained that the people of Pakistan were suffering the burden of sky-high electricity and gas prices and said "electricity and tax thefts are a matter of life and death for Pakistan".

“It is difficult and a long and thorny journey full of hurdles, but countries that surmounted these challenges became one of the most prosperous nations around the world."

He added that he would bring a technological model to reduce tax theft, which he maintained, would "reduce inflation, increase employment, the country will grow".

 

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Shehbaz vows to steer Pakistan out of current crisis​

Updated Mar 03, 14:19
In his maiden speech as the 24th prime minister, Shehbaz thanked the PML-N's allies and his brother, three-time premier Nawaz Sharif, for putting their trust in him to lead the country.

PTI-backed lawmakers chanted slogans of 'chor' as Shehbaz spoke as the newly elected Leader of the House.

“When my quaid was elected the prime minister thrice, the development that followed in the country is an example of its own. And it is not wrong to say that Nawaz Sharif is the one who built Pakistan," said the newly-elected premier.

Paying tribute to his allies and the PPP, he said the nation will always remember the sacrifices of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto.

Shebaz, hinting at PTI, said his elder brother has never even thought of harming the country and regretted how the PML-N was treated during the tenure of the PTI government. “They put the entire opposition behind bars, they didn’t care about women or children and used language that cannot be said out loud."

The new prime minister also vowed to steer Pakistan out of its current crisis. "If we come together and decide to change the fate of Pakistan. God willing, we will defeat these challenges and take Pakistan to its rightful position.”

He added that the job was difficult but not insurmountable

 

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12 candidates vie for three vacant Balochistan Senate seats​

Updated Mar 03, 21:05
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has announced that as many as 12 candidates have submitted their nomination papers for the three vacant Senate seats from Balochistan.

This follows the completion of the submission of nomination papers to the Returning Officer, Muhammad Farid Afridi.

The Senate seats fell vacant following the resignations of Sarfraz Ahmed Bugti, Prince Ahmad Umar Ahmadzai, and Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haidari.

With the deadline for nominations closed, the stage is set for a keenly contested election scheduled for March 14, 2024, within the premises of the Balochistan Assembly.

Muhammad Farid Afridi, who serves as the Provincial Election Commissioner of Balochistan, will oversee the electoral process as the returning officer for the Senate elections.

Candidates had the opportunity to submit their nomination papers on March 2 and 3, between 08:30am and 04:30pm. The deadline for the scrutiny of nomination papers has been set for March 5, while appeals against the acceptance or rejection of nominations can be lodged until March 7.

The tribunal responsible for resolving appeals is mandated to conclude its proceedings by March 9, after which a revised list of candidates will be published. March 10 has been designated as the final date for the withdrawal of nomination papers.

Come March 14, 2024, voters will cast their ballots from 9am to 4pm without interruption, deciding the fate of the three coveted Senate seats in Balochistan.

 

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Profile: Shehbaz Sharif, Pakistan’s new prime minister​

The parliament on Sunday elected Shehbaz Sharif as the country’s new prime minister for a second term.

Shehbaz, the younger brother of three-time Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, and president of his Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) grabbed 201 votes in the lower house, or the National Assembly, defeating his rival Omer Ayub Khan of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party of jailed ex-Prime Minister Imran Khan.

The 72-year-old cancer survivor previously served as premier from April 2022 to Aug. 2023 following a successful parliamentary no-confidence vote against Khan.

Born on Sept. 23, 1951, to a Punjabi-speaking Kashmiri family in Lahore, the capital of Punjab, Shehbaz is known as a "tough administrator" who, according to some analysts, knows the "art to govern."

His administrative skills were widely recognised during his three stints as chief minister of the country’s largest and richest province Punjab i.e. from 1997 to 1999, 2008 to 2013, and 2013 to 2018.

Read detailed story here.

 

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World seems ready to work with Shehbaz govt despite controversial polls​

Despite questions over the legitimacy of the February 8 elections, the world seems to be ready to work with the new government as messages of felicitations started pouring in the moment Shehbaz Sharif was elected as prime minister.

 

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ہسٹری میں فکشن پسند ہے ، شاعری میں شیکسپیئر اور اب جغرافیہ میں انگریزیاللہ رحم کرے
، بچیوں کی وڈیوز نا بنالی ہوں کچرا رانی نے
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