Criticising the outcome of the polls, which saw the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party-backed independent candidates emerging as the largest group by winning over 90 National Assembly seats, the PTI announced holding countrywide "peaceful protests" against what it termed "record-high rigging".

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf has claimed that its candidates won over 150 seats and that the military assisted Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz had engaged in rigging of the ballots to emerge victorious.

The clash between Khan's PTI and the military establishment comes after the party claimed a landslide victory in Pakistan's general elections on February 8. “Police arrested winning independent candidates endorsed by the PTI and raided their residences across Punjab,” said party sources.

The controversy first emerged on March 27, 2022, when Khan less than a month before his ouster in April 2022 while addressing a public rally, waved a letter before the crowd, claiming that it was a cipher from a foreign nation that had conspired with his political rivals to have his government overthrown.

US President Joe Biden is aware of the elections in Pakistan, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters at her daily news conference on Tuesday.

According to the party, the PTI was cruising with a lead of 170 National Assembly seats before the alleged rigging swung the pendulum in favour of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party.

Contrary to its earlier claim, the Election Commission of Pakistan on Monday blamed the suspension of Internet and mobile services on February 8 -- when countrywide polling took place -- and said it did "create hindrance" in declaring results promptly.

PML-N has 75 seats in the 266-member National Assembly, the largest party. Independent members, mostly backed by jailed former prime minister Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, have secured 101 seats.

The threshold to establish a government requires a party to secure 133 seats out of 265 in the National Assembly. The total seats, including reserved slots for women and minorities, amount to 336, with 169 seats constituting a simple majority.

Springing a surprise, independents backed by jailed former prime minister Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party won the lion's share of 101 seats in the National Assembly in Thursday's election.

“We are winning in more than 170 seats of the National Assembly (lower house),” stated Khan in the message posted on his X account. Criticising his adversary, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Nawaz Sharif, for delivering a “victory speech” even when his party trailed behind the PTI.

Pakistan authorities were moving at a snail's pace on Friday to announce the election results that in a surprising development showed disqualified and jailed ex-Prime Minister Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf supported independent candidates leading the show.