KARACHI/LAHORE: Polling for the first phase of local government (LG) elections ended at 5:30pm across Sindh and Punjab on Saturday.

Multiple incidents of clashes between political party activists were reported throughout the day, the worse being Khairpur, where atleast 11 people were killed and five injured in clashes between PPP and PML-F.

There were also reports of firing at a PTI rally in Faisalabad after polling had closed, injuring four party workers, DawnNews reported.

Earlier, voters had lined up outside polling stations as voting for the first phase of the much-delayed local body polls in 20 districts of Sindh and Punjab went underway on Saturday.

Polling started at 7.30am and continued till 5.30pm without any break. In some polling stations, polling began late as presiding officers were not aware of the notification that polling was to be started at 7.30am.

Over 25 million citizens exercised their right to elect LG representatives in 12 districts of Punjab and eight of Sindh. Other districts in the two provinces will go to polls in two phases to follow.

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has clarified that holding expired computerised national identity cards (CNICs) does not invalidate the voters from casting their votes.

The Central Control Room of ECP is monitoring the polling process, reported Radio Pakistan. The control room will continue functioning till compilation of the results.

Complaints about the polling can be registered on the control room's telephone numbers: 051-9204342 and 9210816-9.

The last LG polls were held during the era of Gen (retd) Pervez Musharraf in 2005.

Punjab

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif cast his vote in Union Council 70 in a polling station established in seminary.

"I have full faith in democracy and democracy is our future," said the premier.

The prime minister also added on the occasion that participation in the democratic process by the people of Pakistan shows their resolve in the constitution and the rule of law, and there is no other road to progress and development except for an adherence to democratic values.

In Faisalabad’s UC 54 Abdullahpur, a “fake policeman” attempting to influence the polling was arrested.

Soon after polling started in Gujrat’s Government Public High School 2, presiding officer Muhammad Sharif died of a heart attack.

Polling was halted after the death of Sharif — who was the headmaster of another government school.

A fake voter was reportedly arrested in polling station no. 3 in Lahore’s UC 207.

Meanwhile, it was reported that some PML-N workers uprooted PTI’s camps in Lahore’s Shahdara area.

More than 20 million voters are going to elect their representatives for the third tier of government in Punjab.

Twelve districts — Lahore, Faisal­abad, Nankana Sahib, Gujrat, Bhakkar, Chakwal, Kasur, Pakpattan, Okara, Vehari, Lodhran and Bahawalnager — are included in the first phase of the electoral bout, which has been delayed since 2009.

There are two major contestants, the ruling PML-N and opposition PTI, whereas candidates of the JI, PML-Q, PAT, MQM, JUP, JUI and other smaller groups, besides a large number of independents, are also in the run.

The PML-N leadership believes that the independents will give it a tougher time than the PTI as scores of Leaguers who have been denied party tickets are also contesting independently, Dawn newspaper reported.

A total of 40,101 candidates are in the run in 1,578 union councils and 1,118 wards of 60 municipal committees, while 774 have been elected unopposed.

As many as 16,266 polling stations have been set up, of which 3,551 have been declared highly sensitive and 8,300 sensitive.

Various parties, including the PML-N, in a meeting with provincial election authorities demanded deployment of Pakistan Army and the Rangers to maintain peace, recalling the example of the recent NA-122 by-polls, but they were not obliged.

The ECP says the army will be called in only when the situation so requires and the administration and police will run the show on their own.

Sindh

PPP and PML-F supporters have clashed in Khairpur, the armed clash has left 11 people dead and injured five.

"During the clash, 11 people have been killed and five injured," confirmed SSP Khairpur Pir Mohammad Shah.

Authorities have called the Pakistan Army to control the situation after the bloody clash. Polling has been halted in the area.

Polling was also halted in polling station no.102 after two groups clashed in Jacobabad district. At least two people were injured in the skirmish.

Two groups clashed in wards 1 and 4 in Ghotki district's tehsil Mirpur Mathelo.

The ruling PPP appears to be in a strong position in the eight districts of upper Sindh where polling for the first phase of LG elections is being held on Saturday.

Leader of Opposition in National Assembly and Pakistan Peoples Party stalwart Khursheed Shah and PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari have cast their votes.

More than 4.6 million voters in the eight districts will vote for over 10,000 candidates vying for 2,333 constituencies falling in various tiers of municipal units.

The districts — Larkana, Shikar­pur, Jacobabad, Kashmore, Kamber-Shahdadkot, Sukkur, Ghotki and Khairpur — fall within the territorial jurisdiction of Larkana and Sukkur divisions.

With the traditional election symbol of ‘arrow’, PPP candidates are facing rivals belonging to the PML-Functional, Muttahida Qaumi Movement, Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl, Jamaat-i-Islami, Sindh United Party (SUP) and an alliance of several parties called the Larkana Awami Ittehad.

Sons of the Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Khurshid Ahmed Shah, Senator Islamuddin Shaikh, Sindh LG Minister Nasir Shah in Sukkur, and a daughter of Senior Sindh Minister Nisar Khuhro in Larkana have been elected unopposed, Dawn newspaper reported.

According to official figures shared by the provincial election commission, a total of 5,193 candidates are in the run for 950 constituencies in Sukkur division. Of them, 1,558 candidates will contest on 392 seats in Sukkur district, 2,664 candidates on 111 seats in Khairpur, and 971 candidates on 447 seats in Ghotki district.

In Larkana division, a total of 4,894 candidates will contest for 1,383 seats. They included 625 candidates for 101 seats in Jacobabad district, 609 candidates for 220 seats in Kashmore, 1,357 candidates for 466 seats in Kamber, 1,363 candidates for 314 seats in Larkana and 940 candidates for 282 seats in Shikarpur.

There are 54 town committees — 28 in Sukkur and 26 in Larkana — in the two divisions. Khairpur district has 20 town committees, the maximum number of town committees in any of the eight districts, while Jacobabad has the least number of town committees which is only three.

Also, there are 222 wards for the 28 town committees of Sukkur division and 163 wards for the 26 town committees of Larkana division.

Each of the eight districts has one district council with 187 union councils in Sukkur division and 239 in Larkana division. In all, there will be 4,031 polling stations including 678 of them being marked as sensitive from a security point of view.

Similarly, there are 26 union committees in the city of Sukkur and 20 union committees in urban Larkana.

Each of the two cities will have a municipal corporation having the elected chairmen of the union committees as its members.

The Sindh government has deployed over 31,000 police officials besides the 80 army troops and 2,219 Rangers personnel for election duty in the eight districts.

The army troops have been deployed at sensitive polling stations in Nara and Kingi areas of Khairpur district only.

—With additional reporting by Iqbal Mirza and Irfan Haider