ISLAMABAD - The process for the Senate polls, scheduled for March 2, started on Monday as candidates from various political parties submitted their nomination papers at the offices of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) in the federal and provincial capitals.
Today (Tuesday) is the last day to submit nomination papers, which would be scrutinised on coming Thursday and Friday, while the rejected candidates could file appeals on February 22 and 23. The final list of contestants would be displayed on February 24.
Candidates from PPP, PML-Q, PML-N, JUI-F, ANP, MQM and smaller parties submitted their nomination papers to fill the 50 seats, which are to fall vacant after the retirement of senators on March 11, while four additional seats reserved for minorities are also in contention.
Each province will send 12 new members, including seven general seats and two each for technocrats and women besides one for minorities. Two seats, one general and other technocrat, are reserved for the federal capital, while four seats are allocated for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata). In the light of the passage of 18th Amendment, minorities would get one seat from each province for the first time in Senate polls.
With the retirement of half of the senators in the 100-member house, the numerical strength of PPP would go down from 27 to 20, PML-Q from 21 to one, JUI-F from 10 to three, PML-N from seven to six, MQM from six to three and ANP from six to five, while the number of independent senators will shrink from 12 to eight. The PPP-Sherpao and PML-Functional would remain unaffected in the Senate with one member each.
Five political parties are going to be eliminated from the Senate on March 11, which include Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), Jamhoori Watan Party (JWP), Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP), National Party (NP) and Balochistan National Party (BNP)-Awami.
LAHORE: Candidates of PML-N, PML-Q and PPP for the Senate polls submitted their nomination papers at the ECP office.
Ishaq Dar (also contesting on a technocrat seat), Sardar Zulfiqar Khosa, Rafique Rajwana, Zafar Dhandla, Muhammad Hamza, Muhammad Sarwar, Muhammad Afzal Advocate and Muhammad Bilal Butt from the PML-N submitted their nomination papers for the general seats, while Kamil Ali Agha of PML-Q also an aspirant for a general seat.
Muhammad Aslam of the PPP and Ibrahim Bilal, an independent, also filed nominations on general seats, while Kamran Michael and Shahzad Munshi from PML-N filed their nominations on the seat reserved for the minorities.
Khalida Parveen (PPP) and Nuzhat Sadiq (PML-N) submitted their nomination papers on the seats reserved for the women.
KARACHI: 10 aspirants from the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) submitted nomination papers for the upcoming Senate elections.
MQM Coordination Committee members Nasrin Jalil and Kunwar Khalid Younus, former district nazim Hyderabad Kunwar Naveed Jameel, legal team member Barrister Farogh Nasim, sitting Senator Tahir Mashhadi, Punjo Mal, noted industrialist Dr Arshad Vohra, Naila Latif, former ambassador in Saudi Arabia Umar Khan Ali Khan Sherzai and Arif Bhatti Masih are the party candidates for general and reserved seats.
Talking to the media, they said MQM chief Altaf Hussain had always sent educated people from the poor and middle class to the assemblies.
PESHAWAR: A total of 18 contenders from different political parties including Azam Khan Hoti (father of Khyber Pk Chief Minister Amir Haider Khan Hoti) and Farhatullah Babar, the presidential spokesman, submitted their nomination in the provincial capital.
Candidates from the ANP, PPP and JUI-F filed papers on the first day of the election schedule announced by the ECP.
For general seats, Azam Khan Hoti, party’s Sindh chapter president Shahi Syed, Mian Iftikhar Hussain, Tajuddeen Khan and Baz Mohammad Khan are the ANP candidates, while Shamroz Khan, Ahmad Hassan and Haji Saifullah Khan Bangash are the PPP-backed. Talha Mehmood and Abdul Jalil Jan from the JUI-F also submitted their papers.
For technocrat seats, Farhatullah Babar (PPP), Ilyas Bilour (ANP) and Rahat Hussain (JUI-F) got themselves listed, while ANP’s Zahida Khan and Tabassum Shams along with Naeema Akhtar from the JUI-F filed papers for women seats. Similarly, Amar Jeet and Gulshan Yousaf from ANP have filed their papers for the only seat served for minorities.
QUETTA: Four candidates submitted their nomination papers for Senate elections from Balochistan.
Around 121 candidates from different parties have obtained nomination papers for Senate elections from Balochistan.
Those who filed their nominations included Barrister Saifullah Magsi, former senator Pari Gul Agha, Provincial Minister Mir Shah Nawaz Marri and Kahuda Babar Baloch.

Saifullah Magsi, the son of Governor Nawab Zulfiqar Magsi, is a Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) candidate, who formally joined the party after getting Senate ticket.
Nomination of candidates by the central leadership has sent a wave of anger amongst the PPP leaders in Balochistan. This can be gauged from the fact that former federal minister Akbar Lasi tendered his resignation from the office of vice president of PPP Balochistan and basic membership of the party as a protest. He was a candidate for the senate elections but was ignored.
Other three candidates submitted their nomination papers as independent candidate.
Meanwhile, the PML-N announced its candidates for upcoming senate elections.
Sardar Birat Khan Miryani, Syed Nawab Shah and Akbar Askani have been nominated for general seats. Agha Faisal Shah for technocrat and Kishwar Ahmed are the party candidates for women’s seats. It may be mentioned here that PML-N has only two members in Balochistan Assembly.
The PPP, JUI-F, PML-Q and ANP had already announced the names of their candidates.