HARIPUR: The NA-18 Haripur by-election is in its final stages, the voters and political observers are eagerly looking at the consolidation of the results from the urban and rural areas of the district.
It’s reported by the Returning Officer (RO) office that out of 602 polling stations, the results of 570 stations have been received to date. PML-N candidate Babar Nawaz Khan is leading with 156,129 votes while the independent candidate Sherharnaz Umar Ayub is in the second position with 114,065 votes, which means that the lead of Babar Nawaz is 42,064 votes.
The RO office is still busy entering Form-45 results into the Result Management System (RMS) as the counting of the votes continues for the final official results.
Both candidates’ supporters have been tracking the situation very closely. The result is expected to be the reflection of the voters’ sentiments not only in Haripur city but also in the rural areas of the constituencies.
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NA-18 by-elections: Tension mounts as barbed wire installed outside RO office in Haripur
Security was beefed up quite a bit with barbed wire barriers being installed late on Sunday outside the Returning Officer (RO) office after the arrival of the by-election results for NA-18 Haripur.
Supporters of both PML-N and PTI gathered outside the RO office and thus the atmosphere was charged. After the release of Form-45 results, PML-N leaders and workers got to the place immediately, whereas a large number of PTI supporters also started gathering.
Pusa led by senior party figure Yousuf Ayub Khan marched towards the RO office, demanding transparency in the result compilation process. At the same time, Umar Ayub Khan is said to have ordered PTI workers from all over the district to come to the RO office.
The Deputy Commissioner Haripur, District Police Officer Haripur, and other security officials along with their troops reached the place and their additional forces were seen around the RO office.
Strict security measures are in place as the vote-counting process continues and the RO office is still entering Form-45 data into the RMS system.
