Peshawar, Oct 30 (PTI) — Khurram Zeeshan, a candidate from the party of the imprisoned former prime minister Imran Khan, emerged victorious on Thursday, achieving an overwhelming majority to become a senator representing the general seat from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
The seat was previously vacated following the disqualification of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Shibli Faraz. Faraz, who served as the opposition leader in the Senate, lost his seat after being convicted in connection with the May 9, 2023, riots.
Securing at least 75 votes was necessary to win the seat. Zeeshan successfully garnered 91 votes out of the 137 cast by the lawmakers from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. He defeated Taj Mohammad Afridi, who was backed by the opposition and received 45 votes.
“Thank God,” Zeeshan expressed in a Facebook post. “Our priority is Pakistan’s ‘haqeeqi azadi’ (true freedom),” the PTI leader remarked to reporters outside the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly earlier in the day, echoing a phrase popularized by Khan.
Although three candidates contested the election, the primary competition was anticipated to be between Zeeshan and Afridi. Irfan Saleem, another PTI-aligned candidate in the election, served as Zeeshan's covering candidate.
In the 145-member assembly, four lawmakers from the Awami National Party (ANP) abstained from participating in the polling process.
Chief Minister Sohail Afridi also participated in the voting, expressing his support for Zeeshan in a post on his X account.
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