By-polls for 21 LG seats in Sindh today

Karachi’s mayor and deputy mayor also in the run

KARACHI:

By-elections for 21 local government (LG) seats in 14 districts of Sindh, including Karachi, will take place today (Sunday). Polling will commence at 8am and continue until 5pm without any break.

Nine municipal council seats in Karachi are up for grab. Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab and Deputy Mayor Salman Abdullah Murad are among the contenders. All 121 polling stations in the city have been declared "sensitive" or "highly sensitive."

Election material, including ballot boxes, ballot papers, and indelible ink, has been delivered by the Returning Officers to the Presiding Officers on Saturday. The material was transported to the polling stations under police protection.

The polling will take place for one seat each in district central, district Keamari, and district east of Karachi; three each in district Malir and south district of Karachi; one each in Kashmore, Shikarpur, Ghotki, and Sukkur; four in Khairpur, one each in Shaheed Benazirabad, Sanghar, Tando Allah Yar, and Jamshoro.

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In all, 54 candidates are in the run for Karachi seats alone. A total of 163 polling stations have been set up including 121 in Karachi. Interestingly, none of these polling locations are normal - instead all have been declared "sensitive" or "highly sensitive."

Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab has submitted his nomination papers for the chairman position in three union committees. He has been elected chairman of UC7 of Hyderi Town unopposed and is currently running for chairman of Saddar Town's UC 13. However, he has withdrawn his nomination papers from Mauripur Town's UC 3. Deputy Mayor Salman Abdullah Murad is in the run for the chairman slot from UC7 of Gadap Town.

Across 22 districts of Sindh, elections are scheduled for 76 seats in 69 local councils, with candidates elected unopposed in 50 of these seats, while no nomination papers were submitted for four seats.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 5^th, 2023.