Opposition divided over joint candidate for KP Senate by-election

PESHAWAR: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has formally informed the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Assembly about arrangements for the Senate by-election set for April 23, while differences among opposition parties have emerged over the nomination of a joint candidate for the vacant seat.

According to an official letter sent by the ECP to the Assembly Secretariat, the by-election for the vacant Senate seat will take place on April 23. The commission directed the Secretariat to notify all members of the provincial assembly that they must bring both their original Computerized National Identity Card (CNIC) and Assembly membership card when casting their votes.

The ECP said it would be mandatory for lawmakers to produce both documents at the time of voting. Members of the provincial assembly have also been advised to make sure they carry the two required documents with them on polling day.

Opposition unable to agree on consensus nominee

At the same time, opposition parties have not been able to maintain unity over the by-election, despite an earlier decision to field a consensus candidate for the seat.

The Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) have failed to reach an understanding on a single nominee, while the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has stepped back from the race.

Nomination papers had been filed by JUI-F’s Maulana Abdul Haseeb, PPP’s Raheela Bibi and PML-N’s Asghar for the vacant Senate seat.

A parliamentary committee later interviewed the candidates and instructed the PPP nominee to withdraw her papers. However, both JUI-F and PML-N remained firm on their respective candidates, and no agreement could be reached between the two parties.

The development has exposed differences within the opposition camp ahead of the by-election. While the parties had initially moved toward backing a single candidate, the lack of consensus between JUI-F and PML-N has left that effort unresolved.

The Senate by-election is now scheduled to proceed on April 23 under the arrangements communicated by the ECP to the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Secretariat.