The Pakistani Senate Election 2021 organized on 3rd March 2021. After every 6 years, these elections are being held, and the senators of Pakistan are elected for the next 6 years. Fifty-two Senators out of one-hundred and four would be retired on 7th Feb 2021.
Following the FATA merger (Federally Administered Tribal Areas) with KPK (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), the FATA region seats were eliminated. So no elections would be held on four out of eight seats, and the rest of the four seats would also not be resumed in 2024.
| Title | Description |
| Name: | Senate Elections 2021 |
| Held On: | 3rd March 2021 |
| Senate Chairman: | Sadiq Sanjrani |
| Social Media Handle: |  |
| Senate Parties: | PMLN, PPP, PTI, ANP, JUI-F, MQM, GDA |
| Total Senate Members: | 104 |
| Minimum Age: | 30+ |
Table of Contents
Schedule by ECP
The ECP (Election Commission of Pakistan) has issued the schedule for Senate elections 2021; according to the given notification, candidates have to submit nomination papers from 12th Feb to 13th Feb. A list of nominated contestants would be published on 14th Feb.
Followed by scrutiny procedure from 15th Feb to 16th Feb Appeals could be filed against rejection or acceptance of nominations on 17th and 18th Feb, and tribunal would dispose of appeals on 19th and 20th Feb. The ECP would issue a revised list of nominees on 21st Feb, and 22nd Feb is the last date for candidature withdrawal.
Senate Seats
Fifty-two senators out of one-hundred and four would retire on 11th Mar 2021 upon accomplishing their 6-year term; they would also comprise four out of eight senators from FATA. FATA seats wouldn’t be filled because of the merger of FATA with KPK in 2018, leading to the shrinking of the Senate to one-hundred.
So, the electoral process would be organized to elect forty-eight senators, twelve from Balochistan and KPK, two from the capital city Islamabad and eleven from Sindh and Punjab. By polling, seven members would be selected on general seats, two technocrats, and two women in four Pakistani provinces.
Controversy Regarding Open Ballot
The president of Pakistan issued an ordinance that open ballot procedures should be followed in Senate elections. Lawyers and opposition parties rejected this government’s move to promote a regulation stating that it was an effort to dictate the judiciary and undermine Parliament and the constitution.
Despite lacking strength in Parliament, the ordinance was circulated when the government tabled the twenty-sixth Constitution Amendment Bill in Pakistan National Assembly to conduct Senate elections via open ballot without making an effort to involve opposition.
The opposition parties ultimately rejected this decision and strongly protested in National Assembly when Asad Qaisar placed the bill before the National Assembly.
Candidates for Senate Elections
Meetings of PPP for Candidates Selection
The PPP started its process in February for the selection of candidates for Senate elections. PPP Parliamentary Board arranges a virtual meeting on 11th Feb 2021 jointly presided by ex-President Zardari and chairperson Bilawal Bhutto to select party candidates and consider the seat adjustments with Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) parties.
Based on its numerical dominance in Sindh Assembly, PPP is in a strong and better state to select its seven to eight senators from the province of Sindh. Sources reported that if PML-N would support PPP from Punjab, then PPP would also support PML-N in Sindh or KPK.
PML-N has offered PPP support for ex-PM Yousaf Raza from Punjab, and in turn, PML-N wants support for its candidate in KPK.
Final Candidates
The Parliamentary Board of PPP has declared its candidates and has given tickets for the general seats to Shahadat Awan, Sherry Rehman, Saleem Mandviwalla, Taj Haider, and Jam Mehtab Dahar. On technocrat seats, Dr. Kareem Khawaja and Farooq H. Naek are nominated.
For women’s seats, Rukhsana Shah, Khairun Nisa, and Palwasha Khan have been finalized. PP has nominated Azeem-ul-Haque from Punjab and Farhatullah Babar to contest elections as a PDM candidate, and PM Yousaf would contest the electoral process from Islamabad.
PML-N Candidates
The PML-N has nominated Sajid Mir, Mushaidullah Khan, and Pervaiz Rasheed (who has been declared ineligible) for general seats, Azam Tarar for technocrat seats, and Barrister Sadia Abbasi for women seat.
PTI Candidates
PTI has nominated Fouzia Arshad and Hafeez Sheikh from Islamabad, Faisal Vawda from Sindh for the general seat, and the technocrat seat. The party has nominated Saifullah Abro. PTI has nominated Barrister Ali Zafar, Saifullah Niazi, and Dr. Zarqa from Punjab for general seats; from KPK, Mohsin Aziz, Sania Nishtar, and Dost Mohammad, and Information Minister Shibli Faraz have been named. From Baluchistan, Abdul Qadir has received a ticket for the general seat.
JUI-F Candidates
Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F) has issued tickets to Tariq Khattak and Maulana Ata-ur-Rehman for general seats, and technocrat seats Kamran Murtaza and Zubair Ali have been named. At the same time, Asiya Nasir and Naeema Kishore have been nominated for women’s seats.
For minority seats, Heman Das and Ranjit Singh have been awarded the tickets. Khaleel Ahmad Baledi and Abdul Ghafoor Haidari have been nominated from Baluchistan to contest general seats in Senate elections.
GDA Candidate
The GDA (Grand Democratic Alliance) nominated Pir Sadrud-din Shah as a unanimous contestant.
MQM Candidates
MQM has nominated Rauf Siddique, Waseem Akhtar, Khawaja Sohail Mansoor, Dr. Zafar Kamali, Abdul Qadir, and Faisal Sabzwari for general seats, Syed Khizar Ali and Siddique for technocrat seats. At the same time, Khalida Ateeb has been nominated for a women’s seat. Mian Ateeq, Barrister Mohammad Ali, Nighat Mirza, and Khushbakht Shujaat would complete their Senate tenure.
ANP Candidates
ANP (Awami National Party) KPK has nominated Haji Hidayat-Ullah for the general seat and Dr. Shaukat Jamal for the technocrat seat. The party has nominated Asif Bhatti for the minority seat and Dr. Tasleem Begum for the women’s seat.
Social Media Handles
The Senate of Pakistan Twitter account is: