Pakistan election: Pact may shut out Imran Khan supporters

Pakistan’s second and third political groups have agreed to collaborate following elections where imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s backers secured the lead.

The PMLN led by ex-PM Nawaz Sharif and Bilawal Bhutto Zardari’s PPP released a statement announcing their intention to work together to establish political stability.

If they succeed in forming a government, it’s likely to provoke anger among Khan’s supporters.

Khan’s PTI party was disqualified from participating in the election, leading many of its candidates to run as independents.

Earlier, police dispersed a crowd of Khan’s supporters in Rawalpindi using tear gas.

Final results reveal that independents secured 101 seats in the National Assembly. BBC analysis indicates that 93 of them were supported by PTI.

This places them ahead of PMLN, which won 75 seats, and PPP, which gained 54.

The two parties previously united to remove Khan from office in 2022 and governed until last August.

The MQM party based in Karachi has also made a surprising comeback in the polls, securing 17 seats and potentially influencing any coalition.

Meanwhile, unsuccessful independent candidates have flooded courts with allegations of vote rigging.