Vote counting underway as polling concludes in Gilgit-Baltistan
Why this matters: local context for readers following news across Pakistan and the region.
Vote counting has begun after completion of the polling process in the general elections for 24 seats across 10 districts in Gilgit-Baltistan on Sunday. A total of 396 candidates contested the elections, including eight women candidates. Security arrangements were put in place to ensure peaceful polling. Gilgit-Baltistan Inspector General of Police Akbar Nasir Khan had earlier stated that around 17,000 personnel from police and other law enforcement agencies would be deployed to maintain law and order during the elections. The deployed force included personnel from Punjab and Sindh police, as well as Rangers and Frontier Corps (FC). Senior leaders from the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and its coalition partner Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) actively campaigned for their respective candidates in the region. Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari also addressed election rallies. Meanwhile, the main opposition party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), was not allowed to participate in the elections as a political party. PTI has alleged that several of its senior leaders, including party chairman Salman Akram Raja, were not even permitted to enter Gilgit-Baltistan to campaign for candidates. The party further claimed that some leaders who managed to reach the region were later expelled. Polling underway in Gilgit-Baltistan amid tight security