Pakistan counts votes to decide leader of crisis-hit nation

Islamabad, Pakistan

Pakistan General Election 2024: The process of counting votes began in Pakistan on Thursday (Feb 8) after polling for the general election ended. The general election has been marred by terror attacks, poll rigging allegations, and the shutting down of phone services. 

Sikandar Sultan Raja, who is the Chief Election Commissioner, said that the elections were held in a "100 per cent transparent and peaceful" manner. 

"The polling process continued without any interruption. No citizen was prevented from voting," Raja said as quoted by state-run PTV reports. 

Mobile phone networks switched off across the country, with some reports claiming that it might affect the counting process. 

Also read: Pakistan Elections 2024: Imran Khan casts postal ballot, wife Bushra denied right to vote 

However, Haroon Shinwari, who is ECP spokesperson, said that the results of the elections would be announced on time, adding that internet outages would not impact the electoral system. 

One of the main highlights of the election was the jailing of former prime minister Imran Khan, and the struggling run-up to the vote of his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party members. 

Several reports claimed earlier that the mood of the nation suggests that Nawaz Sharif, who is the former prime minister and chief of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party will win. The three-time former PM returned from a four-year self-imposed exile in the United Kingdom late last year. 

But initial trends of counting showed a mixed result.  

He contested the last election from a jail cell. His convictions for corruption and a lifetime ban from politics were overturned by courts. 

Watch: Internet services partially restored as counting gets underway 

Also read: Eggplants, lions and hookahs: How Pakistan's polls became the stage for comic electoral symbols 

Violence on polling day 

As per reports, more than 650,000 army, paramilitary and police personnel were deployed to provide security on Thursday. The army said that there were a total of 51 attacks nationwide, killing a dozen people including 10 security forces.

At least seven officers were killed in two separate attacks targeting election security details. 

The army said a total of 39 people were wounded in assaults "aimed at disrupting the electoral process". 

(With inputs from agencies)