Pak election won by Musharraf's rivals

Islamabad, Feb 19 : The general elections have given clear lead to the Pakistan People's Party in National Assembly while another opposition party Pakistan Muslim League-N has also attained obvious gains in the polls.

President Pakistan Muslim League-Q Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain and 22 former federal ministers have faced striking defeats in the elections.

According to unofficial results of 256 National Assembly seats the PPP has won 86 seats, while PML-N remain victorious on 65 seats and former ruling party PML-Q was trailing far behind with 37 seats.

The Awami National Party and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement have won 19 seats each, while other political groups and independents won 27 seats.

The voters turnout remained at 45.6 percent in 181 constituencies of the National Assembly, the Election Commission sources said.

Several political stalwarts were defeated in elections including Chaudhry Shujaat, Speaker National Assembly Chaudhry Ameer Hussain, secretary general Pakistan Peoples Party Jahangir Badar, chief of PPP-Shaheed Bhutto Ghinwa Bhutto, Hamid Nasir Chattha, former Chief Minister of Sindh Aftab Shaban Meerani, MMA leader Maualana Fazl-ur-Rahman from Dera Ismail Khan, Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Hyderi, Fakhar Imam, Begum Abida Hussain and Sughra Imam.

The other prominent politicians that have suffered setback in the elections included Rao Sikandar Iqbal, Naurez Shakoor, Ejaz-ul-Haq, Shaikh Rashid, Liaquat Ali Jatoi, Ovais Leghari, Ishaq Khakwani, Sikandar Hayat Bosan, Ghulam Sarwar Khan, Khalid Ahmed Lund, Khurshid Mehmud Kasuri, Humayun Akhtar Khan, Chaudhry Shahbaz Hussain, Dr. Sher Afgan, Wasi Zafar and Yar Muhammad Rind.

In the elections to the four provincial assemblies, the PPP and MQM were in a close fight in the Sindh province, while the PML-N was in the lead in the politically crucial Punjab province.

The Awami National Party, which derives its backing from the Pashtuns, was leading in the polls to the NWFP provincial assembly with the PPP in second place. In Balochistan provincial assembly, the PML-Q established an early lead.

The Islamist alliance Muttahida Majlis-e Amal, which had 50 seats in the previous Parliament, suffered heavy losses with just two wins in the unofficial results.

Turnout was estimated at more than 40 percent of Pakistans 81 million eligible voters, the election commission said.

Yesterdays polls were overshadowed by a wave of violence, including the killing of Bhutto on Dec 27. At least eight people were killed and 80 injured in polling day violence.

ANI