Gillani vs Sanjrani: Elections for Senate top posts today

By Muhammad JuniadPublished On 06 Jan 2023
gillani-vs-sanjrani-elections-for-senate-top-posts-today

  • The knife-edge elections for the posts of Senate chairman and deputy chairman will be held today (Friday).
  • The session starts at 10:00 am for the oath-taking of the newly elected senators.
  • On the same day, the result of the election for the slot of Senate chairman will be announced.

Amid the controversy of the sale and purchase of votes and allegations between opposition parties and the government, the knife-edge elections for the posts of Senate chairman and deputy chairman will be held today (Friday).

According to the Senate Secretariat, the session will meet in the morning at 10:00 am for the oath-taking of the newly elected senators.

PTI's Sadiq Sanjrani and Mirza Muhammad Afridi and the joint opposition’s Yousaf Raza Gillani and Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri will be in a poll fight for the slots of Senate chairman and deputy chairman.

Senator Sayed Muzafar Hussain Shah has been nominated as the presiding officer. He will administer the oath of the members-elect.

Later, the newly elected senators will sign the roll of the members, after which the presiding officer will announce the schedule for the election of the chairman and the deputy chairman of the Senate.

After Friday prayers, the session will resume at 3:00 pm and a second chance will be given to members-elect, if any, to take the oath.

Later, the names of candidates for the slot of Senate chairman will be announced and the election will be held through a secret ballot.

On the same day, the result of the election for the slot of Senate chairman will be announced and the successful candidate will take the oath of his office and preside over the remaining session.

The new chairman will conduct an election for the office of Senate deputy chairman and administer the oath of the returned candidate.

Completion of six-year tenure

Bowing out on completion of their six-year term are veteran lawmaker Raja Zafarul Haq, firebrand Pervaiz Rashid, Ayesha Raza Farooq, Abdul Rehman Malik, Sirajul Haq, Usman Khan Kakar, local Senator Chaudhry Tanvir Khan, and Dr. Jahanzeb Jamaldini.

Five senators passed way before the completion of their term and they are late Muhammad Azam Musakhail, Shahbaz Durrani, Mir Hasil Khan Bizenjo, Kulsoom Parveen, and Mushahidullah Khan.

Then some 12 senators have won re-election and they include Sherry Rehman, Farooq H Naek, Saleem Mandviwala, Shibli Faraz, Liaquat Tarakai, Mohsin Aziz, Zeeshan Khanzada, Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri, Maulana Attaur Rehman, Prof Sajid Mir, Sarfraz Bugti, and Manzoor Kakar.

Fingers crossed

In terms of numerical strength, the opposition has a clear edge with 52 members, including one belonging to Jamaat-e-Islami on its side over the ruling coalition’s 47 members. 

However, as the election for the two key slots will be through secret ballot, therefore, surprise results are being anticipated, especially keeping in view the win of Yousaf Raza Gillani as a senator, defeating the government candidate Dr. Abdul Hafeez Shaikh in the March 3 Senate polls.

48 new Senators elected

In all, 48 senators have been elected to replace outgoing lawmakers. From Islamabad, two senators were elected PPP's Gillani to the general seat and PTI's Fawzia's Arshad to the women's seat.

From Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 12 senators were notified seven senators were appointed to general seats, two to technocrat seats, including Ulema, two to seats for women, and one to the seat reserved for non-Muslims.

From Punjab, 11 senators were inducted to the Upper House seven to general seats, two to technocrat seats, including Ulema, and two to women seats.

From Balochistan, 12 senators have been notified seven to general seats, two to technocrats, including Ulema, two to women seats, and one to a seat reserved for non-Muslims.

From Sindh, 11 senators have officially been notified seven to general seats, two to technocrats including Ulema, and two to women seats.