NA by-polls: PPP defeats PTI in two constituencies

• Musa Gillani bags 79,743 votes to win Multan seat.
• PPP leader wins with a margin of nearly 20,000 votes.
• Runner-up Meher Bano Qureshi secures 59,993 votes.

MULTAN/KARACHI: In a setback to Imran Khan's party, PPP candidates Ali Musa Gillani and Abdul Hakeem Baloch won in their respective constituencies.

Musa — the son of former prime minister Yousaf Raza Gillani — bagged 79,743 votes in the NA-157 Multan-IV by-election and took a lead of 19,750 as Meher — the daughter of PTI leader Shah Mahmood Qureshi — was able to secure 59,993 votes, according to unofficial results.

The competition in Multan was expected between the two candidates as nearly 10 years ago, in early 2012, Gillani won the NA seat from Multan that was vacated by Qureshi, who had joined the PTI by then.

Meanwhile, PPP's Baloch defeated PTI Chairman Imran Khan by obtaining 32,567 votes in the by-election on the NA-237 Malir-II seat. With nearly 10,000 votes less than Baloch, Khan bagged 22,493.

In a press conference after the unofficial results were in, Yousaf told journalists that he was thankful to PPP for awarding his son the ticket and praised PML-N and the coalition alliance for supporting Musa.

"I am thankful to PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif, PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz, and PDM chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman," the ex-prime minister said.

Gillani also slammed PTI Chairman Khan and said that his narrative had led to instability in the country.

“What’s the use of contesting elections when he [Imran Khan] has to resign from other seats,” he said, urging the people of South Punjab to reject the PTI chief’s narrative.

“This wasn’t a contest between Gillani and Qureshi clan, instead it was a fight against Khan’s narrative,” he asserted.

The former premier said that the leaders need to think about the benefit of the country and not about their parties.