Rigging allegations: Inspection of vote records in 111 polling stations ordered

LAHORE:

An election tribunal on Monday ordered an inspection of voting records and bags of 111 polling stations in PP-147, Lahore. The tribunal directed a commission comprising Ghulam Awan, a retired additional sessions judge, to inspect the bags carrying ballots polled in 111 polling stations of the constituency and submit a report on it by August 26.

The tribunal comprising Kazim Ali Malik passed the order on a petition filed by the losing candidate from the constituency, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf’s Shoaib Siddiqui. Siddiqui had challenged the victory of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz MPA Mian Mohsin Latif. The tribunal passed the order after the commission said that there was a difference of 1,000 votes in the results of seven polling stations where inspection was ordered earlier. Siddiqui had requested the tribunal to declare Latif’s victory at the polls null and void.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 19^th, 2014.