ECP takes notice of alleged code violation by Attaullah Tarar ahead of NA-77 by-poll

<p>ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Saturday took notice of an alleged violation of the Code of Conduct by Information Minister Attaullah Tarar during by-election campaigning in <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2034540">NA-77 Gujranwala</a>.</p> <p>According to a press release issued by the ECP, the minister visited the constituency by helicopter and addressed a campaign event for Rashid Basheer Virk, who is contesting elections in National Assembly constituency NA-77 (Gujranwala-I).</p> <p>This violates a provision in the <a class="link--external" href="https://ecp.gov.pk/storage/files/3/code-of-conduct/Code%20of%20conduct%20for%20political%20parties%20English.pdf" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Code of Conduct</a>, which bars public office holders, including federal ministers, from participating in campaign activities.</p> <p>The Commission has sought a report from the district monitoring officer and the district returning officer to inquire into the matter. It has also directed the minister to appear before the commission in person.</p> <p>The ECP added that the result of the constituency could be withheld until a final decision is made on the matter.</p> <figure class="media w-full w-full media-- media--embed media--uneven media--tweet"> <div class="media__item media__item--twitter "><span> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"> <a href="https://twitter.com/ECP_Pakistan/status/2119055117030928717"></a> </blockquote> </span></div> </figure> <p>By-elections in NA-77 and Punjab Assembly constituency PP-203 (Sahiwal-VI) are scheduled for November 8, both of which fell vacant after the deaths of their respective PML-N lawmakers.</p> <p>NA-77 fell vacant following the <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2029216">death</a> of five-time MNA Chaudhry Mehmood Bashir Virk on September 11 after a prolonged illness. His son, Rashid, is among the candidates contesting the by-election.</p> <p>Hanif Jutt had won the seat in a by-election held in November 2025 after the constituency’s original winner, PTI-backed independent Rai Murtaza Iqbal, was disqualified following his conviction by an Anti-Terrorism Court.</p> <p>The upcoming by-election will therefore be the second electoral contest for PP-203 since the 2024 general elections. PML-N candidate Muhammad Asad Hanif Jutt is among the contenders for the vacant seat.</p> <p>Mehmood Virk was elected to the National Assembly five times during his electoral career as a PML-N nominee. Considered a strong loyalist of PML-N supremo and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, he was first elected as an MNA in 1997 and then lost in 2002, but since 2008 he won four consecutive contests.</p> <p>Rashid and 17 other candidates have <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2034540">filed nomination papers</a> to contest the constituency.</p> <p>In <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2034535">PP-203</a>, however, the seat was initially won by independent candidate Rai Murtaza Iqbal, backed by the PTI, who secured 55,874 votes against PML-N’s Chaudhry Hanif Jutt, who polled 35,163 votes.</p> <p>However, Iqbal, along with four other PTI-backed parliamentarians, was disqualified and denotified by the ECP following their conviction by an Anti-Terrorism Court in Faisalabad on July 31.</p> <p>Subsequently, the ECP scheduled a by-election for Nov 23, 2025, which was won by Jutt with 46,820 votes. His closest rival, independent candidate Falik Sher, secured 10,975 votes.</p> <p>Jutt died of cardiac arrest on Sept 17, 2026, necessitating another by-election in the constituency.</p>