PTI, PPP, PML-N eye victory as Gilgit-Baltistan heads to polls

Gilgit-Baltistan is gearing up to vote in the region’s third election since GB was given the power to rule itself in 2009 through its assembly. The votes will be cast today (November 15).

Voting began at 8am and will continue till 5pm.

GB has 24 constituencies and its assembly has 33 seats. A total of 330 candidates are contesting 24 seats. Of the remaining seats, six are reserved for women and three for technocrats.

The region has a population of about 1.3 million and a total of 745,361 voters have registered, of which roughly half or 339,992 are women. The election commission has set up 1,990 polling stations.

PML-N’s Maryam Nawaz, PPP’s Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, and PM Imran Khan visited the region to campaign for their parties.

Deputy Commissioner and District Returning Officer Naveed Khan toured the polling stations Sunday morning and met polling officers.

The first vote in Astore was cast by former local government chairman Muhammad Ramzan.

Chief Election Commissioner Raja Shahbaz visited multiple polling stations on Sunday and heard complaints from staff and voters. He instructed staff not to bother voters and said polling should be transparent this year.

GBLA-1 (Gilgit-I)

List of candidates:

• Johar Ali (PTI)
• Jafarullah Khan (PML-N)
• Amjad Hussain (PPP)
• Syed Mustafa Shah (ITP)
• Tariq Hussain (PML-Q)

GBLA-2 (Gilgit-II)

List of candidates:

• Fatehullah Khan (PTI)
• Hafeezur Rehman (PML-N)
• Jameel Ahmed (PPP)

GBLA-3 (Gilgit-III)- Elections postponed

The election has been postponed in GBLA-3 after one candidate, Justice (retd) Syed Jaffar Shah, died of the novel coronavirus on October 10.

Shah was contesting on the PTI’s ticket. After his death, PML-N candidate Dr Iqbal switched loyalties and joined the ruling party.

The election will be held at a later date.

GBLA-4 (Nagar-I)

List of candidates:

• Zulfiqar Ali (PTI)
• Arif Hussain (PML-N)
• Javaid Hussain (PPP)        
• Rizwan Ali (MWM)

GBLA-5 (Nagar-II)

List of candidates:

• Sajjad Hussain (PML-N)   
• Mirza Hussain (PPP)
• Rizwan Ali (MWM)
• Abid Hussain (PML-Q)
• Muhammad Essa (APML)

GBLA-6 (Hunza-I)

List of candidates:

• Col. Abaid Ullah Baig        
• Rehan Shah 
• Zahoor Kareem                  
• Mehnaz Wali 

GBLA-7 (Skardu-I)

List of candidates:

• Muhammad Zakeria Maqpoon (PTI)
• Muhammad Akbar Khan (PML-N)
• Syed Mehdi Shah (PPP)

GBLA-8 (Skardu-II)

List of candidates:

• Muhammad Saeed (PML-N)      
• Muhammad Ali Shah (PPP)
• Muhammad Kazim (MWM)

GBLA-9 (Skardu-III)

List of candidates:

• Fida Muhammad Nashad (PTI) 
• Wazir Waqar Ali (PPP)
• Wazir Muhammad Saleen (IND)
• Manzoor Ahmed (IND)

GBLA-10 (Skardu-IV)

List of candidates:

• Wazir Hassan (PTI)
• Ghulam Abbas (PML-N)    
• Muhammad Khan Wazir (PPP)
• Mushtaq Hussain (MWM)
• Wazir Ishaq (PML-Q)
• Muhammad Sikander Ali (ITP)
• Najaf Ali (IND)
• Basharat Hussain (IND)
• Raja Nasir Ali Khan (IND)
• Syed Yaseen Shah (IND)
• Manzoor Hussain (IND)

GBLA-11 (Kharmang)

List of candidates:

• Syed Amjad Ali (PTI)
• Shabbir Hussain (PML-N) 
• Niaz Ali (PPP)
• Muhammad Ali Khan (ITP)
• Muhammad Qasim (IND)
• Iqbal Hussain (IND)
• Syed Muhsin Rizvi (IND)
• Shujaat Hussain (IND)
• Ghulam Muhammad (IND)
• Mehboob Ali (IND)

GBLA-12 (Shigar)

List of candidates:

• Raja Muhammad Azam Khan (PTI)
• Muhammad Tahir Shigri (PML-N)
• Imran Nadeem (PPP)
• Muhammad Hassan (PML-Q)

GBLA-13 (Astore-I)

List of candidates:

• Muhammad Khalid Khurshid Khan (PTI)
• Rana Farman Ali (PML-N)
• Abdul Hamid Khan (PPP)
• Abdul Rehman (JI)
• Eijaz Ahmed (IND)
• Rana Muhammad Aflatoon (IND)
• Abdul Rehman (IND)
• Ghulam Akbar (IND)
• Dr Ghulam Abbas (IND)
• Muhammad Shafi (IND)
• Muhammad Munawer Lone (IND)
• Naseem Shah (IND)

GBLA-14 (Astore-II)

List of candidates:

• Shamsul Haq Lone (PTI)
• Rana Muhammad Farooq (PML-N)
• Muzaffar Ali (PPP)
• Mehfooz Rehman (PSP)
• Neematullah Khan (JI)

GBLA-15 (Diamer-I)

List of candidates:

• Noshad Alam (PTI)
• Abdul Wajid (PML-N)
• Bashir Ahamed (PPP)
• Ashiqullah (PML-Q)
• Abdul Baqi (MQM-P)
• Waliur Rehman (JUI)

GBLA-16 (Diamer-II)

List of candidates:

• Atiqullah (PTI)
• Muhammad Anwar (PML-N)
• Haji Dilbar Khan (PPP)
• Saifullah (JUI-P)
• Abdul Aziz (PML-Q)
• Attaullah (IND)
• Muhammad Mera Jan (IND)

GBLA-17 (Diamer-III)

List of candidates:

• Haider Khan (PTI)    
• Saddar Alam (PML-N)        
• Abdul Ghafar Khan (PPP)
• Rehmat Khaliq (JUI-P)
• Muhammad Zaman (IND)
• Mehboobur Rehman (IND)
• Abdul Khaliq (IND)
• Abdul Bar (IND)
• Muhammad Shoaib (IND)
• Naimat Wali (IND)
• Haji Kaman Khan (IND)

GBLA-18 (Diamer-IV)

List of candidates:

• Gul Bar Khan (PTI)   
• Sadia Danish (PPP)
• Mehar Dad (PML-Q)
• Abdur Rasheed (JUI-P)
• Abdul Sattar (IND)
• Malik Shifayatur Rehman (IND)
• Malik Kifayatur Rehman (IND)
• Pachdar (IND)

GBLA-19 (Ghizer-I)

List of candidates:

• Zaffar Muhammad (PTI)
• Atif Salman (PML-N)
• Pir Jalal Ali Shah (PPP)
• Asghar Khan (Barabari Party)
• Sher Ameen (JUI-P)
• Sohail Ahmed (PML-Q)
• Ajab Khan (IND)
• Nawaz Khan (IND)
• Mehboobullah (PRHP)

GBLA-20 (Ghizer-II)

List of candidates:

• Nazir Ahmed (PTI)
• Muhammad Nazar Khan (PML-N)
• Ali Madad Sher (PPP)
• Khan Akbar Khan (PML-Q)
• Abdul Khaliq (JUI-P)
• Sher Faraz (IND)       
• Fida Khan (IND)          
• Shehnaz Bhutto (IND)
• Sherjahan Khan (IND)
• Sher Faraz (IND)
• Safdar Ali Sherazi (IND)
• Attaur Rehman (IND)

GBLA-21 (Ghizer-III)

List of candidates:

• Raja Jehan Zaib (PTI)
• Ghulam Muhammad (PML-N)
• Muhammad Ayub Shah (PPP)
• Javaid Iqbal (IND)
• Gohar Shah (IND)
• Jamsheed Khan (APML)
• Tajwar Hussain (GB Qoumi Movement)

GBLA-22 (Ghanche-I)

List of candidates:

• Muhammad Ibrahim Sanai (PTI)
• Razaul Haq (PML-N)
• Muhammad Jaffar (PPP)
• Gulam Nabi (JUI-P)
• Ibrahim (IND)
• Javed Akhter (IND)
• Rehmatullah (IND)
• Syed Nazar Abbas Kazmi (IND)
• Muhammad Akhter Khan (IND)

GBLA-23 (Ghanche-II)

List of candidates:

• Amina Ansari    (PTI)
• Ghulam Hussain (PML-N) 
• Ghulam Ali Haidary (PPP)
• Ghulam Ali (PSP)
• Mumtaz Ali Yaqvi (PML-Q)
• Wilayat Ali (JUI-P)

GBLA-24 (Ghanche-III)

List of candidates:

• Syed Shamsuddin (PTI)    
• Manzoor Hussain (PML-N)
• Muhammad Ismail (PPP)
• Muhammad Ibrahim Tabbasum (PML-Q)
• Abideen Rahi (IND)

Gilgit Baltistan announces strike from November 14 to 16

Gilgit Baltistan has announced a strike in region during the upcoming elections from November 14 to 16.

The decision was announced in a notification by the Election Commission of Gilgit Baltistan. The commissioner said that polling will begin in 23 constituencies of the region from 8am to 5pm on November 15.

Rigging claims are baseless: chief election commissioner

Gilgit-Baltistan Chief Election Commissioner Raja Shehbaz Khan has said there is no truth to the accusation that the elections have been rigged.

“I can’t stop people from saying what they want,” he said in an interview with SAMAA TV on Friday. “I ask people where is their mandate being stolen? Please tell me if I have done anything illegal.”

He claimed that the opposition parties are trying to build a narrative against the government. If you remember even in the US Elections Donald Trump said the elections were rigged, he said.

This happens everywhere, he added. “I can assure you that the elections will be neat and clean.”

Khan was asked why he didn’t do anything to stop senators, MPAs and other influential leaders from campaigning in the area. “We have issued 330 violations to people but I couldn’t have stopped them through any mechanism. I have to work under the law. You can’t expect me to stand with a baton to stop people.”

Why is Gilgit-Baltistan so important?

Gilgit-Baltistan is a historically distinct political entity near the disputed region of Jammu and Kashmir. It is located at the junction of China, Central and South Asia, and Afghanistan.

Gilgit-Baltistan was previously known as the Federally Administered Northern Areas. It is an autonomous region in northern Pakistan with separate government and electoral system. In 1970, it became a single administrative unit called the Northern Areas under the administrative control of the Ministry of Kashmir Affairs and Northern Areas, formed after the amalgamation of the Gilgit Agency, the Baltistan District of the Ladakh Wazarat, and the states of Hunza and Nagar.

The region is divided into two administrative divisions: Gilgit and Baltistan/Skardu. Its government is made up of the GB Council, Legislative Assembly, ministers, a chief minister and a governor. Its assembly has the power to make laws on 61 subjects, including land revenue and administrative courts and it votes on the budget.

CPEC passes through the Karakoram Highway and covers almost 600 kilometres in GB, giving the area a high profile geopolitically.
Since 1947, GB has not been granted provincial status due to its colonial association with the disputed region of Kashmir. During a recent speech, however, PM Khan promised to make GB into a province soon.

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