Senate polls: Differences emerge within PTI, PML-N over tickets distribution

LAHORE: Differences emerged within Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) over ticket distribution, ARY News reported citing sources.

According to sources, the PML-N senior members tabled the issue of ticket distribution before the party supremo Nawaz Sharif amid differences among the party members.

Sources privy to the development said that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif wants to issue tickets to ministers and few technocrats whereas others are in favour of allotting tickets to those who backed the party in crisis.

On the other side, differences emerged among PTI members over the senate election after the ban on meeting with incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan in Adiala Jail, sources added.

Sources within the party revealed that the political committee is vouching for the party’s senior leader as candidate for senate polls however, the legal committee wants lawyers to be elected as senators from PTI.

Read More: Polling on 48 Senate seats to be held on April 2

It is pertinent to mention here that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) announced that polling for 48 Senate seats will be held on the second of the next month (April).

The electoral watchdog said that election will not be carried out on four seats reserved for the erstwhile tribal areas. “These seats have been abolished after the merger of tribal areas into Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) under the 25th Amendment of the Constitution,” read the statement.

According to the ECP, the Senate polls will be carried out on seven general seats, two women seats, two technocrat seats and one minority seat in Punjab.

It added that the elections will be contested on 12 seats in Sindh as well in the aforementioned denomination while in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, the polls will only be carried out on 11 seats.