PM felicitates PPP leadership for winning highest number of seats in GB elections

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday congratulated Pakistan People’s Party Co-chairman President Asif Ali Zardari and party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari for securing the highest number of seats in Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly elections.

The premier also extended his felicitations to the people of Gilgit-Baltistan for participating in a peaceful and vibrant democratic process.

The PPP has emerged as the leading political force in regional assembly elections with winning 10 seats, according to preliminary and unofficial results.

Sharif also praised his own party, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), which secured six seats after running a heavily contested campaign.

Provisional and unofficial tallies from the Gilgit-Baltistan Election Commission for the 24 directly elected legislative seats placed the political factions in the following positions:

PPP: 10 seats; Independents and PTI-backed: seven seats; PML-N: 6 seats and MWM: one seat.

Former Gilgit-Baltistan Chief Minister and senior PML-N leader Hafiz Hafeezur Rehman praised the polling process as peaceful, noting that his party had issued tickets in 22 constituencies and backed independent candidates in two others.

Rehman stated that final party positions would solidify once official results are issued, adding that all sides must work collaboratively for the region’s development.

PTI Allegations

Meanwhile, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan leveled serious allegations of manipulation against the electoral authorities.

He claimed that PTI-aligned candidates — who were forced to run as independents after being barred from using their traditional party symbol — were leading in eight constituencies before the results were altered.

“We had signed Form-47s (provisional tally sheets) for at least three seats. Our victory was deliberately converted into defeat,” Gohar alleged.

PPP Celebrates Regional Comeback

Meanwhile, senior PPP leaders hailed the results as a massive democratic mandate.

Sindh Assembly Speaker Awais Qadir Shah, along with other leaders including Shazia Marri, Mohammad Bux Mahar and Ziaul Hasan Lanjar, framed the victory as a revival of “Bhuttoism” in G-B.

They emphasized that the electorate reposed their trust in the PPP due to historical administrative reforms, noting that President Asif Ali Zardari had previously granted critical political and executive rights to the semi-autonomous mountainous region during his earlier presidential tenure.

The territory, which borders China and serves as a vital corridor for the multi-billion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) infrastructure network, voted to elect a new assembly for a five-year term after its previous term expired in November 2025.