ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's ruling party candidate Muhammad Sadiq Sanjrani on Friday won the coveted position of Senate chairman, striking a major political blow to the joint opposition that was hoping to clinch victory on the basis of its majority in the upper house of parliament.
In a close contest, Sanjrani bagged 48 votes while the joint opposition candidate Yousuf Raza Gilani could only secure 42 in the 100-member house.
A total of 98 members participated in the election process in which the opposition alliance ostensibly enjoyed the support of 51 members while the ruling coalition had the backing of 47 members.
Presiding Officer Syed Muzzaffar Hussain Shah announced Sanjrani's victory after seven votes cast in favor of Gilani were rejected for not being properly stamped. The opposition challenged the decision, but its argument was rejected.
Sanjrani, a little-known politician and Senator from a remote part of the southwestern Balochistan province, has won the position for the second time after he was elected to it in 2018 as an independent candidate.
"I am thankful to all those who have voted for me," he said after taking oath on Friday. "I'll try to run the house as I did in my previous term by taking everyone along."
The government-backed candidate for deputy chairman Mirza Muhammad Khan Afridi also won 54 votes and defeated the opposition nominee Abdul Ghafoor Haideri after Sanjrani took over the house and presided over the second electoral contest.
Earlier in the day, voting to elect the chairman Senate ended at 5pm after the day was marred by opposition leaders' allegations they had found "hidden" cameras in a polling booth ahead of the polling process.
In response, the presiding officer announced to constitute a Senate committee with equal representation from both the opposition and treasury benches to probe the issue.
The Senate election last week had already been tainted by accusations of corrupt practices and a controversy over the method of voting.
The upper house of parliament gives equal representation to all the federating units in order to promote national cohesion and harmony by counterbalancing the numerical disparity among provinces in the National Assembly.
Each Senator is elected for a term of six years while election is held after every three years with the retirement of half of the members.
According to political experts, Sanjrani's victory will make it easy for the government to get legislations passed from the upper house as well where it technically lacks enough numerical strength.
"The stakes were really high both for the government and the opposition in this election as Senate plays a crucial role in legislation," Ahmed Bilal Mehboob, president at the Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development and Transparency, told Arab News.
However, he said that Sanjrani's victory was not convincing due to the rejection of votes and the opposition could challenge it in an election tribunal.
"The government was likely to have a tough time in the Senate, but now it will have smooth sailing from here on," he added.
