July 2022 Punjab provincial by-election

Last updated
2022 Punjab provincial by-election
Flag of Punjab.svg
  2018 17 July 2022 2022 (Oct)  

20 of the 371 seats in the Provincial Assembly of the Punjab
186 seats needed for a majority
Registered4,579,898 Increase2.svg
Turnout49.71%
 First partySecond party
 
Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi Portrait 1.jpg
Hamza Shahbaz (cropped).png
Leader Parvez Elahi Hamza Shahbaz
Party PML(Q) PML(N)
Alliance PTI+ PDM
Leader's seat Gujrat-III Lahore-XXIII
Last election8 seats, 31.82%1 seat, 25.54%
Seats before173175
Seats won154
Seats after188179
Seat changeIncrease2.svg15Increase2.svg 4
Popular vote1,049,183883,632
Percentage46.83%39.44%
SwingIncrease2.svg15.01Increase2.svg13.90

Punjab By Election 2022.png
Map of Punjab showing Assembly constituencies up for election

Chief Minister of Punjab (Pakistan) before election

Hamza Shahbaz
PML(N)

Elected Chief Minister

Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi
PML(Q) [a]

By-elections were held in Punjab, Pakistan on 17 July 2022 to elect 20 members of the Provincial Assembly of the Punjab. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf won a landslide victory on 15 of those 20 seats, leading to the collapse of Chief Minister Hamza Shahbaz's PML(N)-led coalition government, as it became 7 seats short of a majority. [1]

Contents

The by-elections were held on these seats: PP-7 (Rawalpindi-II), PP-83 (Khushab-II), PP-90 (Bhakkar-II), PP-97 (Faisalabad-I), PP-125 (Jhang-II), PP-127 (Jhang-IV), PP-140 (Sheikhupura-VI), PP-158 (Lahore-XV), PP-167 (Lahore-XXIV), PP-168 (Lahore-XXV), PP-170 (Lahore-XXVII), PP-202 (Sahiwal-VII), PP-217 (Multan-VII), PP-224 (Lodhran-I), PP-228 (Lodhran-V), PP-237 (Bahawalnagar-I), PP-272 (Muzaffargarh-V), PP-273 (Muzaffargarh-VI), PP-282 (Layyah-III) and PP-288 (Dera Ghazi Khan-IV).

In the 2018 election, 11 of these seats were won by Independents, 8 were won by candidates on the PTI-ticket, and 1 by a PML(N) candidate; the 11 independents all subsequently joined the PTI and the PML(N) seat was won by the PTI in a December 2018 by-election. The by-elections were triggered after these 20 PTI MPAs voted in favor of the opposition candidate belonging to the PML(N), Hamza Shahbaz, to become the Chief Minister of Punjab, which, according to the Supreme Court and the Election Commission of Pakistan, violated Article 63-A of the Constitution of Pakistan which concerns party defections.

Background

After the 2018 Provincial Elections, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) won 159 seats and Pakistan Muslim League (N) (PML(N)) won 164 seats. Soon after, 25 out of 30 Independents joined PTI, but it was still 2 seats short of a majority of 186. Pakistan Muslim League (Q) (PML(Q)) with 10 seats formed alliance with PTI. [2] PTI was able to form government in Punjab.

During a political crisis in Pakistan after the successful no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan, another motion of no confidence was filed against Chief Minister Usman Buzdar, as well as against Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi and Dost Muhammad Mazari, the Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the Provincial Assembly, respectively. Buzdar resigned before a vote on the motion of no confidence could be held and as a consequence, an election for a new Chief Minister was scheduled on 16 April between PML(N)'s Hamza Shahbaz, the joint candidate of the Pakistan Democratic Movement, and PML(Q)'s Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, the joint candidate of his party and PTI. On the day of the election, 25 PTI MPAs crossed the floor to support Shahbaz, violating party policy. During the very beginning of the Assembly session on 16 April, a riot began between PTI and PML-N supporters. PTI MPAs threw ewers at the Deputy Speaker, as well as slapping him. The police entered the Assembly for the first time in its history and arrested 3 MPAs. [3] The Deputy Speaker then presided over the Assembly session in the visitors gallery and declared Shahbaz the winner by securing 197 votes. [4]

After the floor crossing, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) de-seated 25 dissident PTI MPAs for defection in the light of Article 63-A of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan on 20 May 2022. [5] Five of these MPAs were elected on reserved seats (three for women and two for minorities) and new PTI MPAs were notified on these seats on 7 July. [6]

The ECP announced on 25 May 2022 that the by-elections would be held on 17 July 2022. [7] The government held 177 seats in the assembly. This included 165 PML(N) MPAs, 7 PPP MPAs, 1 PRHP MPA, and 4 independent MPAs. Therefore, they needed to win 9 seats to gain a majority in the assembly. On the other hand, the opposition held 173 seats. This included 163 PTI MPAs and 10 PML(Q) MPAs. Therefore, they needed to win 13 seats to gain a majority in the assembly.

Candidates

A total number of 330 candidates filed nominations for the 20 constituencies.[ citation needed ] The major contest was between Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and Pakistan Muslim League (N). [8] The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) withdrew its candidates in favor of PML(N) [9] whereas PML-Q withdrew its candidates in favor of PTI. [10] [11]

The nominations of 175 candidates were accepted from across Punjab and they contested in these by-elections. 3,131 Polling Stations were created in 20 Constituencies out of which 731 were for men, 700 for women, and 1700 were combined polling stations. The ECP declared 1304 polling stations sensitive and 690 highly sensitive. All polling stations from the 4 constituencies of Lahore and the constituency of Multan were declared sensitive. [12]

NoDistrictConstituencyCandidatesRegistered voters
1 Rawalpindi PP-7 6335,295
2 Khushab PP-83 10322,428
3 Bhakkar PP-90 9248,960
4 Faisalabad PP-97 12255,884
5 Jhang PP-125 10251,571
6 PP-127 10234,596
7 Sheikhupura PP-140 10241,598
8 Lahore PP-158 14236,394
9 PP-167 11220,348
10 PP-168 10151,484
11 PP-170 8114,652
12 Sahiwal PP-202 8233,079
13 Multan PP-217 4216,996
14 Lodhran PP-224 10232,173
15 PP-228 6226,088
16 Bahawalnagar PP-237 6225,341
17 Muzaffargarh PP-272 9203,567
18 PP-273 6225,200
19 Layyah PP-282 10202,249
20 Dera Ghazi Khan PP-288 6201,995
Total201754,579,898

Results

Vote Share of different parties in the election.
  1. PTI (46.83%)
  2. PML-N (39.44%)
  3. TLP (5.54%)
  4. JI (0.34%)
  5. IND & OTH (7.85%)

Aftermath

In the aftermath of the by-election, it was claimed that PTI MPA from PP-257 (Rahim Yar Khan-II), Chaudhry Masood Ahmad had become a turncoat after his loyalty was allegedly bought, whereafter he soon fled to Turkey. [14] Allegations of rigging were also put forward by PTI in the PP-7 (Rawalpindi-II) constituency, where the PML(N) candidate emerged as the victor with a margin of 49 votes. [15] A plea for a recount was also presented, which was subsequently rejected by the ECP. [16] 2 PML(N) MPAs, Faisal Niazi from PP-209 (Khanewal-VII) and Jaleel Ahmed Sharaqpuri from PP-139 (Sheikhupura-V), also resigned from their seats before the election for Chief Minister. [17] [18]

Election for Chief Minister

The election for Chief Minister took place on 22 July 2022 among members of the Provincial Assembly. [19] Controversially, the votes of ten PML(Q) MPAs were rejected by Deputy Speaker Dost Muhammad Mazari, citing an interpretation of Article 63A of the Constitution and a letter from the leader Shujaat Hussain stating he had "issued directions to all my provincial members to cast their votes in favour of Muhammad Hamza Shahbaz Sharif". This resulted in a majority of valid votes, 179, for Hamza Shahbaz to Pervaiz Elahi's 176. Article 63A states:

63A.

(1) If a member of a Parliamentary Party composed of a single political party in a House— (a) resigns from membership of his political party or joins another Parliamentary party; or (b) votes or abstains from voting in the House contrary to any direction issued by the Parliamentary Party to which he belongs, in relation to— (i) election of the Prime Minister or the Chief Minister; or (ii) a vote of confidence or a vote of no-confidence; or (iii) a Money Bill or a Constitution (Amendment) Bill; he may be declared in writing by the Party Head to have defected from the political party, and the Party Head may forward a copy of the declaration to the Presiding Officer and the Chief Election Commissioner and shall similarly forward a copy thereof to the member concerned : Provided that before making the declaration, the Party Head shall provide such member with an opportunity to show cause as to why such declaration may not be made against him.

Explanation―Party Head means any person, by whatever name called, declared as such by the Party.

(2) A member of a House shall be deemed to be a member of a Parliamentary Party if he, having been elected as a candidate or nominee of a political party which constitutes the Parliamentary Party in the House or, having been elected otherwise than as a candidate or nominee of a political party, has become a member of such Parliamentary Party after such election by means of a declaration in writing.

The PTI filed a petition with the Supreme Court of Pakistan, stating that as PML(Q) leader Hussain was not a member of the Punjab Assembly, he did not have the authority to make the decision to back Shahbaz under section 2 of the constitutional article cited, as only the Parliamentary Party has the authority to decide which candidate its members are to vote for. [20] [21] Additionally, under a 17 May Supreme Court ruling, although defecting lawmakers' votes will not be counted for purposes of voting in Article 63A, section 1, subsection b, [22] none of the 10 PML(Q) members had been deemed to have defected, as that would have required a letter stating as such from the leader, which was Shujaat Hussain. As a consequence of the court proceedings, Shahbaz was made a “trustee Chief Minister” until the three-judge bench of Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, Justice Munib Akhtar, and Justice Ijaz-ul-Ahsan, could reach a decision.

The bench ruled on 26 July that the Deputy Speaker's ruling was unconstitutional and that Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi would be sworn in as the Chief Minister of Punjab. [23]

Punjab, Pakistan Chief Ministerial Election, 22 July 2022
CandidatePartySupporting PartiesVotes Obtained
Required majority →186 out of 371
Pervaiz Elahi PML(Q) PTI 186Yes check.svg
Hamza Shahbaz PML(N) PPP, PRHP, Independents 179 X mark.svg

Notes

  1. Although Elahi was a part of the PML(Q), the majority of his support in the assembly was from the PTI, and all the 20 candidates nominated by the PTI-PML(Q) alliance in the constituencies were also members of the PTI.

References

  1. "Pakistan: Former PM Imran Khan stuns rivals with Punjab by-election upset". BBC News . 2022-07-18. Retrieved 2022-07-19.
  2. "PML-Q decides to back PTI in Punjab". Global Village Space. 2018-07-31. Retrieved 2022-07-01.
  3. Khawaja, Naseer (2022-04-16). "Punjab Assembly: Police enters house, takes MPAs into custody after brawl". ARY NEWS. Retrieved 2022-07-01.
  4. Sheikh, Adnan (2022-04-16). "Hamza Shehbaz elected Punjab CM after garnering 197 votes in session marred by melees, chaos". Dawn . Retrieved 2022-07-01.
  5. Chaudhry, Fahad (2022-05-20). "ECP de-seats 25 dissident PTI MPAs for defection". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 2022-07-01.
  6. Virk, Saqib; Malik, Hasnaat (2022-07-07). "PTI bags five reserved seats in PA". The Express Tribune. Retrieved 2022-07-09.
  7. "ECP announces schedule for by-polls on 20 Punjab Assembly seats". www.thenews.com.pk. 25 May 2022. Retrieved 2022-07-01.
  8. "PTI vs PML-N: Who are the candidates contesting in Punjab by-polls?". www.geo.tv. Retrieved 2022-07-01.
  9. "Punjab by-polls: PPP candidates to withdraw in favour of PML-N". Latest News - The Nation. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  10. Farooq, Azhar (2022-06-07). "PML-Q to support PTI candidates in Punjab by-polls". ARY NEWS. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  11. "PTI vs PML-N: Who are the candidates contesting in Punjab by-polls?". www.geo.tv. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  12. "Punjab by-elections: Voting underway to decide fate of 175 candidates". Brecorder. 2022-07-17. Retrieved 2022-07-17.
  13. "Election Commission of Pakistan (OFFICIAL) on Twitter". Twitter. 15 July 2022. Retrieved 2022-07-17.
  14. "With numbers on his side, Elahi ready to settle score with Sharifs". Minute Mirror. 2022-07-21. Retrieved 2022-07-21.
  15. "RO rejects PTI recounting of votes plea in PP-7 by-election". Dunya News. 20 July 2022. Retrieved 2022-07-21.
  16. Yusuf, Nausheen (21 July 2022). "ECP dismisses PTI plea seeking recount of votes in PP-7". www.geo.tv. Retrieved 2022-07-21.
  17. Reporter, The Newspaper's Staff (2022-07-16). "PML-N MPA's resignation accepted". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 2022-08-23.
  18. "Another setback to PMLN as MPA Sharaqpuri resigns". www.thenews.com.pk. Retrieved 2022-08-23.
  19. Malik, Hasnaat; Yasif, Rana (2022-07-01). "SC orders Punjab CM re-election on July 22". The Express Tribune. Retrieved 2022-07-17.
  20. "Elahi wins, but Hamza gets the prize". The Express Tribune. 2022-07-22. Retrieved 2022-07-25.
  21. Hayat, Muhammad Omer; Farooq, Umar (2022-07-22). "Elahi suffers shock defeat as Hamza retains Punjab CM position after deputy speaker's contentious ruling". Dawn. Retrieved 2022-07-25.
  22. Bhatti, Haseeb (2022-05-17). "Article 63-A: SC decides defecting lawmakers' votes will not be counted". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 2022-07-25.
  23. "SC declares ruling on Punjab CM poll null and void". The Express Tribune. 2022-07-26. Retrieved 2022-07-26.