PPP’s Attaullah Shah wins Diamer seat by just 13 votes after postal ballot count

According to the final consolidated Form-49 issued by the Gilgit-Baltistan Election Commission, Shah received 6,618 votes, while Malik secured 6,605 votes

GILGIT: PPP candidate Attaullah Shah has secured the GBA-16 (Diamer-II) seat in the Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly after the Election Commission completed the verification and counting of postal ballots, defeating IPP’s Imam Malik by a narrow margin of 13 votes.

According to the final consolidated Form-49 issued by the Gilgit-Baltistan Election Commission, Shah received 6,618 votes, while Malik secured 6,605 votes.

Malik had initially been declared the successful candidate following the June elections after contesting as an independent. He subsequently joined the Istehkam-i-Pakistan Party (IPP). His election victory, however, was challenged by Shah, who argued before the election tribunal that the returning officer had prepared Form-49 without including the postal ballots in the count.

The tribunal on September 11 ordered the returning officer to verify and count the outstanding postal ballots by September 16. It also suspended Malik’s assembly membership pending the process.

The postal ballot proceedings began on Sunday under heightened security. The Election Commission had directed all candidates to attend personally or through authorised representatives.

According to the commission, Malik and PML-N candidate Muhammad Anwar neither appeared themselves nor sent representatives. The postal ballots were therefore verified and counted in their absence under Section 235 of the Election Act, 2017.

PPP candidate Shah and other contestants, including Mohammad Nasir and Saifullah, were represented by their authorised agents during the proceedings, which continued for several hours.

The counting process was conducted in the presence of Gilgit Senior Civil Judge Fahad bin Naqeeb, Assistant Registrar of the Chief Court Raj Mir and Deputy Election Commissioner Muhammad Ali.

The closely watched result drew supporters from both sides outside the Election Commission Secretariat. Malik’s supporters remained at the site overnight as the postal ballots were being processed, while PPP workers later gathered to celebrate Shah’s victory, distributing sweets and chanting party slogans.

The legal battle over the Diamer-II seat is not yet over. The Gilgit-Baltistan Supreme Appellate Court is scheduled to hear Malik’s appeal against the election tribunal’s decision to suspend his membership.

Shah’s counsel, Islamuddin Advocate, previously said that Justice Sardar Muhammad Shamim Khan would determine whether Malik’s appeal was admissible.

The final outcome of the legal proceedings could determine whether Shah retains the closely contested seat, which has emerged as one of the most closely watched electoral disputes in Gilgit-Baltistan.