Claim: In 2018, when Ali Musa Gillani contested elections against Zain Qureshi in NA 157, a recount was demanded due to a 4,000-vote margin, and more than 18,000 votes were rejected at the time.
Fact: The actual number of rejected votes was 4,233 as per Form 47 while the margin of victory stood at 6,541.
Elections 2024
According to the results issued by the ECP, independent candidates backed by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) won 93 of the 264 National assembly seats. Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) secured 75 seats, the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) was able to secure 54 seats, while the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) bagged 17 seats.
Protests have erupted across the country following allegations of widespread rigging during the general election, which were levelled by Imran Khan’s party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and other nationalist groups. With no clear winner declared, the country is in turmoil as multiple parties have laid claim to the government.
Fact or Fiction?
On 11 February 2024, Kasim Gillani claimed (archive) that during the 2018 elections in NA-157 between PPP’s Ali Musa Gillani and PTI’s Zain Qureshi, a recount was demanded due to a 4,000-vote margin, and more than 18,000 votes were rejected at the time.
His tweet reads,
“ہم مہر بانو کے دوبارہ گنتی کے حق کا احترام کرتے ہیں، کیونکہ شفافیت جمہوری سالمیت کے لیے بہت ضروری ہے۔ اسی حلقے سے 2018 کے انتخابات میں، جہاں علی موسیٰ نے زین قریشی کے خلاف مقابلہ کیا تھا، 4000 ووٹوں کے فرق کے ساتھ دوبارہ گنتی کی درخواست کی گئی تھی اور 18000 سے زیادہ ووٹ مسترد کیے گئے تھے۔ اس بار، 5% سے زیادہ فرق کے ساتھ، consolidation کا عمل مکمل ہو گیا ہے۔ انکا قانونی سہارا الیکشن ٹریبونل ہے، اور ہم اس کی طرف سے کسی بھی ہدایت کا خیرمقدم کرتے ہیں
[We respect Mehr Bano’s right to a recount, as transparency is vital to democratic integrity. In the 2018 elections from the same constituency, where Ali Musa contested against Zain Qureshi, a recount was requested with a margin of 4,000 votes and over 18,000 votes were rejected. This time, with a difference of more than 5%, the consolidation process is complete. Their legal recourse is the Election Tribunal, and we welcome any directives from it]”
Soch Fact Check found the claim to be false. As per Form 47, issued by the ECP, 237,879 valid votes were cast from NA-151 Multan IV and 16,555 rejected in the 2024 elections. PPP’s Ali Musa Gillani won from this constituency with 79,080 votes while PTI-backed Meher Bano Qureshi got 71,649 votes.
The rejected ballots exceeded the victory margin in 24 NA constituencies including in NA-151, where Ali Musa Gillani won with a margin of 7,431 votes. The number of rejected votes in the constituency was, however, as high as 16,555.
Contrary to Kasim Gillani’s claim that 18,000 votes were rejected in NA-157 in 2018, the actual number of rejected votes was 4,233 as per Form 47. The margin of victory stood at 6,541, almost 2,541 votes more than what is mentioned in the claim by Kasim Gillani.
For another constituency, NA-159 Multan VI, PTI’s Rana Muhammad Qasim Noon won with 102,606 votes in 2018, while PML-N’s Dewan Muhammad Zulqarnain Bukhari emerged as the runner-up with 99,374. The winning margin was 3,232 and rejected votes were 6,628 in this constituency.
Virality:
The tweet by @KasimGillani gained significant traction with 480,500 views, 692 likes and 212 reposts.
Conclusion: Contrary to Kasim Gillani’s claim, the official records, as per Form 47, reveal that 4,233 votes were rejected, and the margin of victory was 6,541 in NA-157 in 2018.
Background image in cover photo: AFP
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