Three-times-prime minister Nawaz Sharif claimed victory in Pakistan’s general elections – even though independent candidates backed by rival Imran Khan are in the lead as counting continues.

Sharif said that his political party has emerged as the largest in the vote and will discuss forming a coalition government.

The lead of independent candidates backed by jailed former prime minister Imran Khan came as a surprise given claims by his supporters and a national rights body that the balloting was manipulated to favor Sharif.

Election results were hit by long delays overnight, causing frustration and panic among voters who alleged it was due to ballot-rigging.

Independent candidates have secured around 85 seats, while Sharif’s PML-N is some way behind with around 59.

The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) of Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is trailing a close third with 31 seats so far.

Any party needs 133 seats in parliament for a simple majority but many analysts believe the vote may not produce a clear winner.

However, Sharif, who was the favorite to come out of this election leading the country, has lost his Mansehra constituency seat in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, reported Geo News.

Sharif will still enter parliament as an MP, winning another seat he contested in Lahore. 

Sharif said his deputies would meet other political parties later to discuss forming a coalition government.

Lack of clear majority could cause trouble

Analysts predict the problems will mount for Pakistan and its economy if the election does not result in a clear majority for anyone.

There are concerns that things will become particularly tricky given Islamabad’s request for a new bailout program from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) after the current arrangement expires in three weeks.

A coalition government “would probably be unstable, weak,” and “the big loser… will be the army. Because the army really has staked its reputation on its ability to deliver this vote”, Marvin Weinbaum, director of Afghanistan and Pakistan studies at the Middle East Institute in Washington, told the British media Independent.

The election was expected to help resolve the crises Pakistan has been dealing with but a fractured verdict “could very well be the basis for even deeper exposure to forces which would create instability”, he said.

Rigging fears 

Allegations of poll rigging overshadowed election day itself, as well as authorities’ hours-long shutdown of Pakistan’s mobile phone network.

“A concerted effort has been made to hijack the election,” PTI information secretary Raoof Hasan told AFP late Friday.

“They were not successful because there is deep-seated commitment to Khan among the people.”

Caretaker Interior Minister Gohar Ejaz defended the “difficult decision” to suspend mobile phone services on security grounds.

“We were fully aware that suspension of mobile services would impact the transmission of election results across Pakistan and delay the process, however, the choice between this delay and safety of our citizens was quite straightforward,” he said in a statement on Friday. 

Digital rights activist Usama Khilji said the mobile service blackout “strengthens the popular perception that the elections are rigged by the deep state”.

But Mohammad Zubair, a 19-year-old street hawker in Lahore, said PTI supporters would not accept a PML-N victory. 

“Everyone knows how many seats Khan’s independent candidates have won,” he said. “They don’t have a symbol, or a captain, or a flag, or banners but still we have won on the field.”

Pakistan foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari made a brief stopover at Chattogram airport on Wednesday.

Information and broadcasting minister Hasan Mahmud received the Pakistan foreign minister, Pakistan high commissioner in Dhaka, said in a Facebook post.

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari made the stopover on his way to Phnom Penh, Cambodia to lead the Pakistan delegation at the 29th ministerial meeting of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), a regional forum, being held from 4 August till 6 August.

The two ministers during the meeting also exchanged books of each other’s country as gifts.

The Pakistan foreign minister stayed for around 40 minutes at the airport, the Facebook post reads.

Foreign ministers of Bangladesh and India have shared a common vision of connecting South and Southeast Asia through regional projects of water, rail and roadways, as well as sharing of energy, tourism and telecommunication networks.

Regional integration and cooperation are more important than ever, given the challenges of climate change and post-Covid scenarios where supply chains were affected – leaving the lives and livelihoods in jeopardy.

Bangladeshi Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen and Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar made these remarks at the inaugural programme of the two-day international river conference titled, “NADI Conclave” in Guwahati, Assam today (May 28, 2022).

Shillong-based think tank Asian Confluence in collaboration with the Union External Affairs Ministry, Act East Policy Affairs Department of the Assam government, North Eastern Council organised the Natural Allies in Development and Interdependence (NADI) conference.

Stating that Bengal was in the height of its richness when the regional rivers were connected and the traders could easily sail through the rivers, Momen said over time, many of these connections were suspended but several are in the process of revival.

He mentioned that over the years, Bangladesh and India have reestablished river, road and railway networks that are also connecting northeastern India to the rest of the country.

Bangladesh, located between South and Southeast Asia, is eager to be the bridge between the two regions including Myanmar and Thailand, and landlocked Nepal and Bhutan, for easing trade, he said. River routes are more important because those are cost effective and environment-friendly.