Islamabad: Early trends in Pakistan's general elections, marred by low voters turn-out, today went against President Pervez Musharraf with one of his former ministers losing and another trailing.

Initial trends showed Pakistan People s Party (PPP) of its slain leader Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif's PML(N) doing well in their respective strongholds Sindh and Punjab respectively while Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM) was faring well in Karachi as counting of votes was underway. Zubaida Jalal, a former minister in Musharraf's cabinet, was defeated as an independent candidate for the National Assembly from Kech-Gwadar in southwestern Balochistan province by Yaqub Bizenjo of Balochistan National Party-Awami. She was the education minister during 1999-2001. Musharraf s confidante and high-profile former minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed trailed in a prestigious seat in Rawalpindi.

Ruling PML-Q's Rasheed, a seven-time winner from his constituency and a former railway minister in the Musharraf government, is behind PML-N s Javed Hashmi in one of the two prestigious seats in Rawalpindi.

According to other unofficial results aired by domestic TV channels, PPP s Najmuddin Khan won from Dir district in the North West Frontier Province.

Sharif told an Indian TV channel that he was happy with the election trends.

The Election Commission is yet to officially announce the turn-out or any of the results though TV channels have been reporting unofficial trends in national and provincial assembly seats across the country.

Source : PTI