The election tribunal of the Balochistan High Court has annulled the victory notification of PPP’s Mir Ubaidullah Gorgage for the PB-44 (Quetta VII) constituency in the Balochistan Assembly.
Led by Justice Abdullah Baloch, the tribunal has ordered repolling at 16 polling stations within the constituency. This decision follows an election petition filed by Haji Atta Muhammad Balochzai, a candidate from the National Party, who challenged Gorgage’s win, citing irregularities in the voting process.
Advocate Nadir Chalgari represented the petitioner, while Advocate Amanullah Kanrani and other lawyers appeared for Gorgage. During the tribunal’s previous hearing, the petitioner argued that Gorgage initially received only 113 votes from the 16 disputed polling stations. He alleged that through fraudulent means, including tampering with Form-45s, Gorgage’s vote count was artificially inflated by 6,437 votes, leading to his victory.
The petitioner also presented his own Form-45, which revealed significant discrepancies compared to the officially declared results.
After reviewing the evidence, the tribunal issued a final ruling, canceling the notification of Gorgage’s victory from February 22, 2024, and declaring the seat vacant.
The tribunal has directed the Election Commission to conduct repolling at the affected polling stations and ensure transparency by appointing new returning officers, deputy returning officers, and polling staff. Additionally, it instructed that a copy of the decision be forwarded to both the provincial Election Commission and the Election Commission of Pakistan.
