Imran Khan's supporters celebrate PTI's landslide victory

Lahore: Ousted prime minister Imran Khan's supporters took to the streets to celebrate Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf's landslide victory in the crucial Punjab Assembly by-polls that snatched the key province from the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (Nawaz).

As the voting on all 20 constituencies of Punjab by-polls completed late on Sunday night, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) won 15, PML-N four and one independent was declared successful.

Thumping victory in the by-polls helped Khan's party to achieve a magical number of 186 to form the next government in Punjab. The PTI and its ally party PML-Q's total tally stands at 188 in the Provincial Assembly. The PML-N and its allies have a total of 179 lawmakers.

PTI-PMLQ joint candidate Chaudhary Parvez Elahi is likely to be the new chief minister of Punjab dethroning incumbent Hamza Shehbaz, who is the son of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

The PTI has demanded the resignation of Hamza as he has lost the mandate in the Punjab Assembly.

The election on these 20 seats was held after the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had de-seated 25 lawmakers of PTI for voting for Hamza Shehbaz for Punjab chief minister's election last April. Five of them were elected on reserved seats.

In the by-polls, the PTI not only has come in a position from the Punjab government but it also snatched the stronghold of PML-N. Lahore, the citadel of the Sharifs also fell to Khan with his PTI grabbing three of the four seats in Punjab's capital city. After the victory, a large number of PTI supporters, including women and children, took to the streets in different parts of the country and burst crackers and

distributed sweets.