Vote counting is well under way in Pakistan after a parliamentary election intended to complete the transition from military to civilian rule.
Opposition supporters are celebrating victory in Pakistan after an election intended to complete the transition from military to civilian rule.
Opposition supporters have already started celebrating victory.
They are confident supporters of President Pervez Musharraf are heading for a heavy defeat.
They are confident supporters of President Pervez Musharraf are heading for a heavy defeat.
Unofficial returns suggest some of the president's leading allies have lost their seats, but it is expected to be some time before a clear trend emerges.
Early unofficial returns suggest some of the president's allies have lost their seats, but it is expected to be some time before a clear trend emerges.
Monday's election was delayed after the killing of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto.
Polling was delayed after the killing of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto.
Although there were none of the major bomb attacks which overshadowed the run-up to the election, a number of people have been killed in clashes between rival party supporters.
On the streets of Karachi, young supporters of Ms Bhutto's PPP party celebrated late into the night, dancing and firing guns into the air, says the BBC's Jill McGivering.
There have also been reports of some missing ballot boxes.
But across the city, their main political rivals, allies of President Musharraf, were also claiming victory, our correspondent adds.
Nine killed
Most official counts will not be declared until later on Tuesday.
Fears of violence dissuaded many of the country's 80 million eligible voters from leaving their homes, and voting in many places was low.
A number of people were killed in clashes between rival party supporters during Monday's election, and there were reports of missing ballot boxes.
In one incident in Daska district in the Punjab, a polling agent from one party reportedly shot dead an agent from a rival party after a dispute.
But there was also widespread relief that there were none of the major bomb attacks which had marred the run-up to the election.
In another, on Sunday, at least four people, including a candidate, were reported to have been killed after an attack on former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's PML-N party.
BBC journalists also reported a number of voting irregularities across the country:
BBC
correspondent Riaz Sohail was shot at as he approached a polling station in Natario village, Sindh province, to investigate reports of ballot stuffing; Pakistan People's Party (PPP) activists and voters were also fired upon
Fears of violence had dissuaded many of the country's 80 million eligible voters from leaving their homes, and voter turnout was estimated to be less than 40%. Close to half a million security personnel, including about 80,000 soldiers, had been deployed to quell any outbreak of fighting.
In
Karachi, protesters from the Awami National Party (ANP) blocked roads and stoned vehicles after an attack on their candidate
Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif accused the PML-Q party that backs Mr Musharraf of fixing votes and attacking supporters of his PML-N party in some areas.
Firing
on a polling station in Gujranwala in the Punjab caused voting to be suspended
Asif Ali Zardari, Ms Bhutto's widower and the leader of her PPP party, had threatened to launch street protests if the election was rigged.
The
presiding officer of a polling station in east Karachi - a PPP stronghold - said his police escort took him to the wrong location, leaving him 5km (three miles) from the station, meaning polling was delayed by five hours
One international election observer, US Senator Joseph Biden, said he feared instability if electoral malpractice was suspected.
Nawaz Sharif, after casting his ballot in the eastern city of Lahore, accused the PML-Q party that backs President Musharraf of "committing rigging, and... attacking our candidates and supporters", AFP news agency reported.
The leader of Ms Bhutto's PPP party, her widower Asif Ali Zardari, had threatened to launch street protests in the event of vote-rigging.
President Musharraf, voting in Rawalpindi, vowed to work in "harmony" with whoever won the polls.
There are many local election observers on the ground, but few international observers, who have either not been invited or complained they could not work freely.
One, US Senator Joseph Biden, said he feared instability if the vote was rigged.
"If the majority of Pakistani people do not think the election was fair then I think we have a real problem," he said.
"If the majority of Pakistani people do not think the election was fair then I think we have a real problem," he said.
Security tight
No clear majority
Close to half a million security personnel, including about 80,000 soldiers, have been deployed for the voting.
For his part, Mr Musharraf, who voted in Rawalpindi, vowed to work in "harmony" with whoever won Monday's election.
The BBC's Barbara Plett, outside a polling station in Lahore, described a barrier designed to prevent car bombs and a heavy police presence.
She said men and women were in separate queues for voting.
In one tribal area near Peshawar, she said, elders had banned women from voting.
Polls suggest a fair vote is likely to result in a hung parliament, with none of the three biggest parties winning a majority, analysts suggest.
In the town of Charsadda, in volatile North West Frontier Province, election official Shah Zeb told the AP news agency: "We're all afraid but what can we do? I left my home today, and I prayed to God to bring me back safely. Now it is in the hands of God."
Prospects
Analysts say polls suggest a fair vote is likely to result in a hung parliament, with none of the three biggest parties winning a majority.
Attention will then turn on the PPP, and whether it chooses to join forces with pro-Musharraf parties, or with Mr Sharif's party.
Attention will then turn on the PPP, and whether it chooses to join forces with pro-Musharraf parties, or with Mr Sharif's party.
Mr Sharif is staunchly opposed to the president, and if the two opposition parties jointly gain two-thirds of the seats, they may try to impeach him, correspondents say.
Mr Sharif is staunchly opposed to the president, and if the two opposition parties jointly gain two-thirds of the seats, they may try to impeach Mr Musharraf, correspondents say.
Mr Musharraf stepped down as army chief late last year. He has ruled the country since seizing power in a coup in 1999.
Mr Musharraf stepped down as army chief late last year. He has ruled the country since seizing power in a coup in 1999.
