Voting for the by-election in NA-249 has started at 8 am and will continue till 5 pm without any break.
The National Assembly seat became vacant after the resignation of PTI’s Faisal Wawda.
There are 30 candidates in the fray, including Muftah Ismail of PML-N, Amjad Afridi of PTI, Qadir Khan Mandokhel of PPP, former mayor of Karachi Mustafa Kamal and Hafiz Mursalin of MQM. Independent candidates are included.
NA 249 (201,656 males and 137,935 females) has more than 339,000 registered voters who will exercise their franchise at 276 polling stations.
The ECP has declared 184 polling stations as highly sensitive and 92 others as sensitive. CCTV cameras have been installed at the most sensitive polling stations.
While polling continues, the commission has also appointed special staff to strictly enforce corona virus instructions.
Some of the well-known areas of the constituency include Delhi Colony, Mujahid Colony, Baldia and Saeedabad, while in the neighborhood of this working-class, prominent ethnic groups include Urdu speakers, Pashtun, Kashmiri and Seraiki speakers.
The Sindh government has declared a public holiday today (Thursday, April 29) to facilitate voters.
