Imran Khan demands early election after Punjab polls triumph

Imran Khan has hammered the struggling Pakistani government during polls in its electoral heartland, giving fresh impetus to his populist campaign only three months after being cast from power.

The former cricketer's party won enough seats to regain control of Punjab province, after months of rallies declaring that he had been ousted as prime minister by a foreign conspiracy.

Early tallies predicted the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) had won 15 of 20 seats up for grabs in Pakistan's most populous province, and the 69-year-old immediately renewed his demands for a general election to be brought forward.

Mr Khan has been on the campaign trail since being turfed out by a no-confidence vote and has told crowds he was the victim of US scheming because Washington was angered by his independent foreign policy.

Washington says such claims are nonsense, but analysts said Sunday's victory was a strong indication Mr Khan might be able to translate support at his rallies into ballot box success.

The Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) government led by Shehbaz Sharif has also paid a political price for painful decisions to scrap fuel subsidies in order to get an international bailout.

"The only way forward from here is to hold free and transparent elections," Mr Khan said early on Monday.

"Any other way will only lead to increased political uncertainty and further economic chaos."

Mr Khan's rallies have also seen supporters rail against the country's military, which carries significant political clout and has repeatedly held coups or acted as kingmaker in Pakistani politics.

The army was seen as backing Mr Khan during his 2018 election victory, but the cricketer has since blamed senior generals for turning on him earlier this year.

Asfandyar Mir, of the United States Institute of Peace, said the result was “a bigger political win for the PTI than their tainted 2018 win, which puts Imran Khan on track to return to power stronger than before”.

Pakistan last week managed to persuade the International Monetary Fund to resume a bailout programme, but only after cutting fuel subsidies leading to price hikes which have badly hit motorists and businesses.

The rupee fell to new lows in the wake of the poll, amid the spectre of more political turmoil.

Madiha Afzal, of the Brookings Institution think tank, said the PTI win meant Mr Sharif would now struggle to govern.

She said: “More than anything perhaps, the Punjab by-elections show that Khan’s narrative has resonated with the population, and that the PML-N will need to fundamentally rethink its strategy and update its approach.