PPP, IPP candidates retain seats in Gilgit-Baltistan re-polling

In Gilgit-Baltistan, re-polling held on Sunday at nine polling stations has resulted in the retention of their seats by Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) candidate Mohammad Naseem and Istehkam-i-Pakistan Party (IPP) candidate Mohammad Dilpazeer. Naseem secured victory in the GBA-17 Diamer-III constituency, while Dilpazeer retained his seat in GBA-15 Diamer-I.

The re-polling was mandated by the Gilgit-Baltistan Supreme Appellate Court after election petitions were filed by Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) candidates alleging rigging in the initial elections held on June 7. The court had suspended the results pending further proceedings.

Unofficial results indicate that Mohammad Naseem won GBA-17 Diamer-III with 10,714 votes against JUI-F candidate Rehmat Khaliq's 6,990 votes, following re-polling at eight stations. In GBA-15 Diamer-I, Mohammad Dilpazeer, who later joined the IPP, secured 6,033 votes to his opponent JUI-F candidate Waliur Rehman's 4,639 votes, after re-polling at one female station.

The re-polling process, which took place on July 12 from 8 AM to 5 PM, was reported to be peaceful, with security personnel deployed. Both winning candidates and their supporters celebrated the outcomes. Meanwhile, the Gilgit-Baltistan Election Commission announced that a by-election schedule for the GBA-09 Skardu-III constituency would be issued soon, following the disqualification of a PPP candidate for asset concealment.