Punjab holds by-elections in NA-77 and PP-203
The ECP is reviewing a code complaint against Information Minister Attaullah Tarar over a helicopter campaign visit in NA-77, according to Minute Mirror.
Polling is under way in two Punjab constituencies, NA-77 and PP-203, for by-elections to the National Assembly and the provincial assembly. Dawn reported that voting was continuing on Sunday. The NA-77 seat fell vacant after the death of five-time MNA Chaudhry Mehmood Bashir Virk on September 11 after a prolonged illness.
Rashid Basheer Virk, the son of the deceased MNA, is among 18 candidates who filed nomination papers for NA-77, according to Dawn. The report said the PTI, PPP and Jamaat-i-Islami did not opt for the by-election. Minute Mirror also reported that the three opposition parties decided not to participate in the contest.
Minute Mirror reported that the Election Commission of Pakistan took notice of an alleged violation of its election code of conduct involving Information Minister Attaullah Tarar. The report said Tarar travelled to the constituency by helicopter and addressed a campaign event in support of Rashid. The ECP said the action violated its code, which bars public office holders, including federal ministers, from taking part in election campaigns. The commission sought reports from the district monitoring officer and the district returning officer, directed the minister to appear before it and warned that the constituency's result could be withheld until a final decision, according to Minute Mirror.
A by-election is being held in PP-203 after the death of PML-N MPA Chaudhry Muhammad Hanif Jutt, who died of cardiac arrest on September 17, 2026, Minute Mirror reported. The constituency had already held a by-election after the 2024 general elections. Independent candidate Rai Murtaza Iqbal, backed by the PTI, initially won with 55,874 votes but was later disqualified along with four other PTI-backed parliamentarians after their conviction by an anti-terrorism court in Faisalabad. Jutt later won the November 23, 2025 by-election with 46,820 votes.
Authorities set up 185 polling stations in PP-203 and deployed 1,370 polling personnel, including 574 women and 796 men, according to Minute Mirror. District Police Officer Usman Tipu said 1,100 police personnel were assigned security duties. A traffic management plan is in place, with more than 65 personnel deployed around polling stations.
How the reports differ
Dawn's report centred on the NA-77 vacancy, the 18-candidate field and the opposition parties' decision not to take part in the by-election. Minute Mirror carried the same candidate count and boycott but added that the ECP had taken notice of Information Minister Attaullah Tarar's helicopter campaign visit and warned that the NA-77 result could be withheld. Minute Mirror also set out the PP-203 vacancy, its earlier by-election and the polling and security arrangements.
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