Imran Khan, Nawaz Sharif face-off as Pakistan goes to polls this week
Pakistani cricket star-turned-politician and head of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Imran Khan, arrives to attend an election campaign rally ahead of the general election in Islamabad on July 21. Pakistan will hold the general election on July 25. Photo: AFP
Pakistan, which goes to polls on 25 July, will see a transfer of power from one civilian government to another, for only the second time in almost 71 years of its existence.
For a country, which has seen its powerful military dismiss civilian governments at regular intervals, such a seemingly smooth transition of power can be deemed an achievement. However, analysts see it as a dubious distinction, given the penchant of the army to work behind the scenes to skew poll results.
Wednesday’s electoral battle for the 272 directly elected seats in the 342-member Pakistan National Assembly is primarily seen to be between cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) or PML(N).
Credit: livemint.com