Sri Lanka, Feb. 16 -- A key aide of former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan said on Thursday that the jailed leader had nominated Omar Ayub Khan as a candidate in a parliamentary vote to elect a new premier following last week's national elections.

The party also announced countrywide protests against what it called widespread rigging against it in the polls. The election commission has denied such accusations and said legal forums would address any specific concerns.

The polls did not return a clear majority for anyone, but independent candidates backed by Khan won 92 out of 264 seats making them the largest group. Khan ruled out alliances with the three largest parties, which means his candidate currently lacks the numbers to form g...