ISLAMABAD - In the lead-up to Senate election due on March 5, four Senators on Saturday successfully made it to the upper house for being elected as unopposed on seats reserved for technocrats and women as Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) issued final list of candidates to be contesting the election.
On Saturday when ECP issued the list of 131 candidates vying for Senate election, Pakistan People's Party's (PPP) Farooq H Naek and Sassi Palejo automatically got elected from Sindh Assembly as unopposed candidates on seats reserved for technocrats and women respectively.
Similarly, Muttahida Qaumi Movement's (MQM) candidates, Muhammad Ali Khan Said and Nighat Mirza in Sindh Assembly were elected as unopposed on seats reserved for technocrats and women respectively.
According to the final list of candidates 131 candidates would be contesting election on March 5 from the four provinces, federal area and federally administered tribal areas (Fata).
According to the final list, as many as 16 candidates would be contesting the polls in Punjab Assembly after two candidates withdrew their candidatures. Punjab unlike other provinces has the minimum number of aspirants as the ruling PML-N expects sweeping victory in the province.
Fata seems to be leading in terms of maximum number of candidates where 36 aspirants are in the race for four seats as only two candidates took back their nomination papers on Saturday.
Among provinces, Balochistan is on top where 32 candidates would be contesting election on 12 seats where five candidates are in race for a single seat reserved for non-Muslims, 14 candidates for seven general seats, seven aspirants for technocrat/ulema seats and six candidates contesting election for two seats reserved for women.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) seems to be bracing for a tough competition on March 5 where 29 candidates would be taking part in the exercise and seven candidates on Saturday withdrew their candidature.
In KP, 12 candidates are in the race for seven general seats, six on two seats reserved for women, six candidates on two seats for technocrats and three aspirants for one seat reserved for non-Muslim.
In what looks like mutual understanding between MQM and PPP, as many 16 candidates took their nomination papers back on Saturday reducing the number of contesting candidates to only 12 out of which 4 candidates got elected unopposed.
In Sindh Assembly, only eight candidates would be contesting on seven general seats after the four candidates contesting for four seats reserved for women and technocrats got elected unopposed.
In federal area, eight candidates are in the run for two seats as nobody has declared withdrawal of candidature.
Election to the 104-member upper house would take place on March 5 in order to elect 52 new Senators as half of the legislators would be completing their six-year tenure on March 11 this year.