In the polling for presidential election that commenced in the Punjab Assembly 10am and went unabated till 3pm on Saturday, the two leading parties of the country PML-N and PPP multiplied in their original strength of votes by polling 201 votes for PML-N candidate Saeed-uz-Zaman Siddiqui and PPP polling 123 votes for its presidential candidate Asif Ali Zardari.
The original vote strength of PML-N in Punjab Assembly is 171 while PPP strength in the House is 107.The third candidate Mushahid Hussain Syed in the presidential race bagged 36 votes. The position indicates that PML-Q, which had 83-vote strength, has dropped its voting numerical by 47 votes.
With 43-vote gain by two major parties, the entire situation of present political scenario could be well gauged. In the election, 10 votes were rejected. The PML-N sources claim that majority of votes rejected were polled in their favour. The presidential election during the day was presided over by Chief Justice of the Lahore High Court Justice Zahid Hussain.
The presidential election about which estimations were already abound that there would be large defections of PML-Q votes have proved true and unification group and Forward Group of the party has played its part in the elections proving the rumours right.Now one of the pertinent questions that stand aloud today is that what the law speaks on these defection of votes?
In the Assembly Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif, Chief Minister, Punjab talking to journalists dilated that it was important that coalition with PPP was kept in tact but unfortunately lack of understanding between the two parties had resulted in ending it up. He said that they would now sit on the opposition benches in the National Assembly. Shahbaz said that if PPP acts upon agreements of August 5,7-2008 then still they could come back in the coalition.
Meanwhile PPP activists were having big success functions on the streets of Lahore and Governor House in particular where they were distributing sweets and releasing pigeons and other birds in the thanks giving gestures. The PPP activists leading 'Pakistan Khupe' processions were also going to the mausoleum of Sufi Saint Hazrat Data Ganj Baksh (RA) till the last reports came in.
Meanwhile on the Chairing Cross opposite assembly premises a large number of PPP activists were also celebrating the victory of Asif Ali Zardari in presidential race. The activists overjoyed with victor spirit were raising slogans 'Aik Zardari sub par bhari' and 'Lahore bane ga Larkana'.
Meanwhile political pundits averring their views on PML-N performance in presidential election in Punjab termed 221 votes as a threshold where the party could attain its independent nomenclature as political authority of the province without PPP.