Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf announces list of candidates for Senate elections

Islamabad [Pakistan]: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) announced the final list of candidates for the Senate elections, scheduled to take place on April 2, Geo News reported.

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) will hold the Senate election in April to fill the 48 seats that fell vacant upon the expiration of the six-year term of the incumbent senators last week.

According to the schedule announced by ECP, March 16 was the last date for submission of nomination papers. PTI on its official X handle released the list of candidates “approved” by Khan.

According to details, the incarcerated PTI founder okayed the names of Murad Saeed, Faisal Javed, Mirza Muhammad Afridi, Irfan Saleem, Khurram Zeeshan and Azhar Mashwani from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Senate general seats, according to Geo News report.

Azam Swati and Irshad Hussain will be PTI’s candidates for Senate technocrat seats from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa while Ayesha Banu and Rubina Naz will be candidates for Senate reserved seats, Geo News reported.

In Punjab, Imran Khan has approved the names of Hamid Khan and Zulfi Bukhari as PTI’s candidates for general seats. PTI leaders Yasmin Rashid and Sanam Javed will be the party’s candidates for technocrat and women-reserved seats from Punjab, respectively.

Earlier, senior PTI leader Asad Qaiser expressed doubts if the names of candidates has been finalised by the PTI’s founding chairman Imran Khan or not.

In his interview on private news channel, Qaiser said, “I have no clue if Imran Khan approved it or not. I don’t want to comment on it,” Qaiser made these comments while speaking during an interview with a private news channel.

Meanwhile, PTI leader Mian Aslam Iqbal had earlier announced the names of party candidates for the Senate elections. However, confusion emerged as Qaiser raised questions regarding the names of PTI candidates.
According to the Election Commission of Pakistan, the polling for Pakistan’s Senate elections will be held on April 2. Reportedly, the scrutiny of nomination papers will be done on March 19, according to ARY News. The revised list of candidates will be issued on March 26, however, the candidates can withdraw their nomination papers by March 27.

Notably, 52 seats in the upper house of parliament will fall vacant after the expiration of the 6-year term of the incumbent senators on Tuesday. The electoral body appointed polling officers for the Senate elections 2024 set to be held on April 2, reported ARY News.

Earlier on Thursday, the ECP issued the elections schedule for 48 vacant seats of the Senate. According to the schedule, polling will be held on April 2 from 9 am to 4 pm. The ECP appointed seven polling officers each for the National Assembly and Punjab Assembly, the sources said.

Furthermore, it appointed six polling officers each for the provincial assemblies of Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The election watchdog also appointed four polling for the Balochistan Assembly, as reported by ARY News. In this electoral process, the Balochistan Assembly will have the authority to elect 11 Senators, comprising seven for general seats, two for women, and two for technocrats.