Pakistan: Polling concludes in erstwhile FATA, counting of votes underway

The counting of votes is underway after polling concluded in the erstwhile Federal Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) in Pakistan at 5 pm on Saturday.

The counting of votes is underway after polling concluded in the erstwhile Federal Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) in Pakistan at 5 pm on Saturday. Polling began at 8 am in the 16 districts, according to Geo News.

Law enforcement forces were deployed at nearly 554 "highly sensitive" polling stations. The results in the tribal districts will be given through messaging app 'WhatsApp' due to network issues in the area, according to the provincial election commissioner.

A total of 1,897 polling stations were set up for Saturday's elections in the region. At least 282 candidates from parties like the ruling Pakistani Tehreek-e-Insaf, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, and independents amongst others, have fought for 16 general seats.

Out of the candidates, two female nominees -- Naheed Afridi and Malasa Bibi -- are also hoping to secure their place as the representatives of PK 106 and PK 109 respectively. A combination of seven autonomous regions, FATA was merged into Khyber Pakhtunkhawa last year. (ANI)

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