Ali Hassan Zehri | Pakistan

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Friday again suspended the victory notification of PPP’s Ali Hassan Zehri, who contested the Balochistan Assembly PB-21 Hub constituency in the Feb 8, 2024, general elections. The development comes a day after the electoral watchdog had declared Zehri the winner of PB-21. “Pursuant to the order passed by the Islamabad High Court, Islamabad dated 26th February, 2026 […] whereby Mr. Ali Hassan Zehri was declared returned candidate from PB-21 Hub, are hereby suspended, till further orders,” said a notification by the ECP released on Friday. The recounting saga Originally, Balochistan Awami Party’s (BAP) Muhammad Saleh Bhootani, who had secured more than double the votes obtained by Zehri, was declared the winner in the constituency. But, a recount at 39 polling stations two months after the Feb 8, 2024, general elections led to Zehri being declared the winner. While the original count had not even declared him the runner-up, the recount not only got him the top spot b...

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan on Thursday again declared PPP’s Ali Hassan Zehri the winner of Balochistan’s PB-21 (Hub) constituency. The development comes more than two years after the 2024 general elections and a day after the electoral watchdog ordered a recounting of votes polled in the constituency’s 39 polling stations “as soon as possible but not later than 3 working days positively”. Subsequently, the ECP said in its notification issued on Thursday: “Pursuant to the order dated February 25, 2026 passed by the ECP […] and as a result of recounting at (39) polling stations conducted by the returning officer, PB-21 Hub, the notification dated December 19 2024, is hereby restored, whereby Ali Hassan Zehri was declared the returned candidate from PB-21 Hub.” Meanwhile, the Islamabad High Court also took up the matter and directed that the operation of the Feb 25 order shall remain suspended until the next date of hearing. The recounting saga Originally, Balochistan Awami Party’s (BAP) Muha...

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) is set to hear a unique case on Tuesday (February 24), involving an increase of 10,000 in the number of polled votes and over 13,000 in the number of rejected votes for a Balochistan Assembly seat following a controversial recount. The recount at 39 polling stations of PB-21 (Hub) took place two months after the Feb 8, 2024 general elections. The recount had declared PPP’s Ali Hassan Zehri the winner, even though the original count had not even declared him the runner-up. The original winner, Balochistan Awami Party’s (BAP) Muhammad Saleh Bhootani, who had secured more than double the votes obtained by Zehri, was pushed down to the third spot. After the recount, the percentage of polled votes had also changed from 55.15 per cent to 58.48pc. It is worth mentioning that the significant change in the electoral figures was linked to a saga involving the arrest of five individuals from the strong room where the electoral record had been stored. They were alleged...