The PP-206 Khanewal by-elections are being contested by all of the major political parties, including Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP).
Nishat Khan Daha, a member of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), died on October 23, leaving the seat vacant.
Nishat Daha won this seat in the 2018 general elections with 51,353 votes, followed by Rana Mohammad Saleem, who ran on the PTI ticket, with 47,807 votes.
Election result 2021, PP206
Polling Stations 183/183
- Rana Mohammad Saleem (PML-N) 46700 WINNER
- Naureen Nishat Daha (PTI) 35390
- Mir Syed Wasiq Haider (PPP) 12327
- Sheikh Muhammad Akmal (TLP) 9347
According to political experts, the race between PTI’s Naureen Nishat Daha and PML-Rana N’s Mohammad Saleem is predicted to be close, with Daha’s wife likely to win owing to sympathy votes and the fact that she is the governing party’s candidate.
Due to his frank speech, clean credentials, and down-to-earth demeanor, many political experts who live in Khanewal and are familiar with the area regard PPP’s Mir Wasiq as a dark horse in the race.
Naureen Nishat, according to political insiders in this seat, is currently dominating the polls; she comes from a political family, and her brother Malik Ahmed Hussain Daher is a PTI MNA from NA-154 Multan. According to reports, she is also urging constituents to vote for her if they want the region to be developed since development funding would only be issued to candidates from the Treasury benches.
Analysts haven’t ruled out PML-Saleem, N’s who is running for the third time in this seat and has strong backing from a variety of parties. Similarly, political observers noted that although PPP’s Mir Wasiq is a newcomer to mainstream politics, he has the ability to surprise everyone with a victory since his family is regarded as “a family of martyrs” by the Khanewal residents.
His father and older brother were assassinated by a banned militant group, and he stayed loyal to his political party through thick and thin.
However, the bulk of political insiders in the constituency believes it would be a close race between the PTI and the PML-N. However, shocks are likely after the PPP’s strong showing in the NA-133 by-elections in Lahore, when they received 32,313 votes compared to 5,585 votes in the 2018 general elections.
Analysts are wondering how PPP would do in PP-206 Khanewal, given the substantial increase in votes for the party in NA-133. This is significant since neither the PTI nor the TLP was present in NA-133 Lahore, however, they are both present in PP-206.
Speaking about election politics in South Punjab, notably Khanewal, local journalist Syed Amir Hussaini claimed that NA-133 Lahore encompasses most of the regions with PPP’s Bhutto past. “However, in terms of electoral history, the PP-206 Khanewal constituency has been anti-Bhutto, particularly in the five union councils of Khanewal city.” The remains of the Pakistan National Alliance (PNA) are still active and powerful.”