Pakistan election 2018 live: Imran Khan, Shahbaz Sharif, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari battle for power



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The Campaign Ends Today

By Ashfaq Ahmed, Deputy Editor, United Arab Emirates

Dubai: The Election Campaign for the 2018 General Elections Concludes Tonight (12 midnight) with thousands of candidates to vote Although the main parties' election campaign has been a little dull compared to previous elections due to bombings of some conflict-provoking rallies, leaders of major political parties have not been able to vote. did not move as they continued to hold Gatherings until the last minute

This election is unique because the three main political parties are competing with each other in a race to form the national government and also try to take power in the four provinces.

 Fazalur Rehman, leader of the alliance of the Pakistani religious parties, shows solidarity with the others Fazalur Rehman, leader of the alliance of the Pakistani religious parties, shows solidarity with other election campaign leaders in Karachi. AP

More than a hundred parties are participating in the 2018 elections, but a real fight is taking place between the three main political parties: Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N), Pakistan People & # 39 Party (PPP) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). It is expected that one or the other of these three main parties will form the next government.

A few other smaller but significantly strong parties that play a key role in every election and can form an alliance to help larger parties form the government include the Karachi-based Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM); Muslim League of Pakistan-Q; Great Democratic Alliance (JDA); large religious party alliance called Mutahida Majlis Amal (MMA), Lay Awami National Party (ANP); Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP); Party Baluchistan Awami (BAP) and National Baluchistan Party

Violence, corruption case Sharif put Pakistan to an end

Washington Post

The elections to choose the next Pakistani Prime Minister are plagued by tensions that, according to analysts, could burst. political upheaval in the nuclear nation that is a key player in US efforts to combat terrorism in the region.

Emotions are high on a corruption case that has put ousted Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in jail this month. Wednesday's elections for control of the National Assembly should be a close fight between the Pakistan-Muslim League Sharif party and Pakistan's movement for the justice of the Imran Khan ex-cricket.

After a series of suicide bombings Nearly 160 people in less than a week, including a Khan party candidate Sunday, 371,000 soldiers will be in the country's polling stations – which some consider as a necessary layer of security and others as evidence that has organized several coups in the past, intends to control the results in a still fragile democracy.

In this context, there is the possibility that Khan, 65, who is considered a favorite of the Pakistani armed forces, will prevail

All but a crushing victory on either side risk of being spoiled by allegations of fraud and a fight for control of the government – distracting the attention of a founding economy, analysts say an impending debt crisis and policy problems foreigners who include US attempts to end the war in neighboring Afghanistan

"There is a greater likelihood that this could lead to a political crisis." Moeed Yusuf, a South Asian expert on American Institute for Peace

Khan, a fiery speaker who presents himself as a crusader against government corruption, seized the case that trapped Sharif – a They both returned from London this month to surrender after being r Known guilty of having hidden money through the property of luxury apartments in London and other offshore properties, which comes from the leaked documents of Panama 2016. [19659004Sharif68wassentencedto10yearswhileherdaughterwassevenyearsoldBothareappealingtheirsentencesofimprisonment

Khan and his supporters say the case shows how the corridors of power in Islamabad have long been tainted by corruption at the expense of the nation's torn economy

. talk to an audience that understands issues like corruption and how that affects their lives, "Khan wrote on Twitter this month. "They now understand the correlation between corruption and poverty, unemployment and inflation."

His message resonated with the growing urban middle class, mostly young and conservative, said Michael Kugelman, senior associate for Southeast Asia. At the Wilson Center in Washington, DC,

"These young, conservative urban middle class citizens see established parties as corrupt, disconnected, and not really interested in providing for the people," Kugelman said. "It's a key constituency to capture."

Sharif's party is shaken by the fact that its charismatic founder is in prison and disqualified for life.

But the party remains formidable, especially in Punjab province – It won 141 seats in the National Assembly, which allowed Sharif to come to power in the 2013 elections. To control the government, a party must win at least 172 seats.

Before surrendering, Sharif energized his base by alleging that the corruption charges were part of a move by the armed forces to repel him.

] As prime minister, Sharif often disagreed with the military and argued for policies against his leaders, such as normalizing relations with India, the bitter enemy of the country

Rock the vote: Pakistani political music keeps the party [19659002AFP

As the crowd prepares for the arrival of their leader Shahbaz Sharif, a DJ sings the anthem "Respect the vote ", while supporters chant slogans and head for the synthesizer track

a lot," Nauman Khan shouts during the dance in Punjab province ahead of Pakistan's national elections.

"We really like Nawaz Sharif's songs," he shouts. to Shahbaz's husbands she, the former imprisoned prime minister who continues to inspire his supporters of the Pakistan-Nawaz Muslim League (PML-N) behind bars.

Pakistani political rallies have been transformed in recent years into festive eruptions, designed to entertain as much as to encourage fans.

The formula was first perfected by Asif Butt – best known by his DJ DJ Butt – a former wedding DJ who enjoyed fame in 2011 at a rally for Imran Khan.

It is here that the Lahore-based DJ began to perfect his art, playing contemporary songs to warm up the crowd and musical interludes to live performances – injecting drama into long stretches of music. # 39; oratory. Khan is a fast learner. He quickly understood where he needed to take a break for the music and where he had to keep talking, "says Butt.

The mashup was a success, paving the way for continued collaboration between Butt and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) The 2013 election campaign attracted younger and more urban voters.

Pakistani political parties have used music as a means of propagating slogans and unifying supporters since the rise of pop music in the late 1980s. But more and more, and thanks to DJs like Butt, the The rhythms of political gatherings fill a vital space in the deeply conservative Islamic country, offering the masses obsessed with music a dance and disjointed space. 19659004] Playing Crowd

Butt's career resembles that of an ambitious climber in the chaotic political landscape of the country.

He played in front of crowds of tens of thousands of people, in prison, and even occupied the bridges during a riot as the police repressed a demonstration of PTI with batons and tear gas

Butt's plan for success is simple: playing the crowd

In Punjab, he goes out of the Bhangra dance style of the province. In the rural north-west, it sticks to traditional folk tunes, while in urban areas, the playlist is exclusively pop. "DJ Butt and the PTI are the spiritual leaders," says writer Ahmer Naqvi on Pakistani music policy.

Its success has since triggered a cottage industry, with political parties across the country hiring DJs on the electoral trail to attract voters.

At a PTI rally in Lahore, parts of the crowd look like a pit mosh "

" The younger generation loves music at Imran Khan's gatherings because it there is enthusiasm and fervor, "says Muhammad Ali, a supporter of PTI

" And there are DJs there.

Back in Pindi Gheb of Punjab Province, Abdul Ghaffar, a Sharif supporter, slams the "song and dance" witnessed by Imran Khan's rallies for involving men and women. [19659004] "We don Sharif must be taken to the hospital

The political party of the former imprisoned Prime Minister of Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif, asked the authorities to take him away.

Pervaiz Rashid, a spokesman for the Pakistan Muslim League, commented Monday that doctors should examine Sharif, who has a history of heart disease.

Sharif suffered an open heart He was operated on in a London hospital in 2016.

He has been detained in a prison in the city of Rawalpindi since July 13, when he returned from London to face a sentence of ten years of imprisonment for corruption, the party "does not seek any concessions" for Sharif, but he has the right to be treated by his doctor

Tensions and violence intensified in Pakistan before the parliamentary elections of Wednesday

. aggravates:

AFP

Former imprisoned Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif suffers from hypertension, but he was prevented from seeing his personal physician, his party announced Monday.

Sharif was sentenced in his absence for corruption and arrested on his return to Pakistan at the beginning of his month, ahead of Wednesday's election.

Members of his Pakistani Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) said the powerful military was trying to influence the vote against his party. The former prime minister was widely sentenced to ten years in jail for rallying his party before arguing with his main rival, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, led by Imran, a politician turned cricket. Acting Prime Minister Nasir-ul-Mulk and Punjab Provincial Chief Minister Hasan Askari were contacted to request access to Sharif's personal physician, but all requests were rejected. " Spokesperson Maryam Aurangzeb told AFP: "Nawaz Sharif, who is also a heart patient, has been very ill since Saturday, after his blood pressure rose," added Aurangzeb

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