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Friday March 29, 2024

PML-Q in racefor nine NA, 11 provincial seats in polls

By Tariq Butt
July 17, 2018

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Muslim League-Q (PML-Q) that ruled for five years during Pervez Musharraf’s reign has fielded only twenty candidates for the directly contested 849 federal and provincial seats.

This time, the PML-Q, formerly known as the king’s party, opted for the Tractor election symbol abandoning Bicycle, now allotted to PML-Jinnah, which it always preferred in successive general elections.

It sponsored candidates only in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) while it doesn’t have even a single contestant in Sindh and Balochistan for any federal or provincial seat. The outgoing Balochistan Chief Minister Abdus Qaddus Bizenjo who was installed after the ouster of Nawab Sanaullah Zehri of the PML-N, belonged to the PML-Q. He later along with others founded the Balochistan Awami Party (BAP).

In Punjab, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and PML-Q have made an unannounced alliance and the former has not sponsored candidates against the latter’s nominees. However, this coalition did not exist in KP where the PTI put up its candidates against the PML-Q representatives. A total of 272 National Assembly seats are up for grabs. The PML-Q has only four aspirants in the race for the Punjab seats. In KP, thirty-nine federal seats are being contested. The PML-Q has fielded only five candidates.

Similarly, there are 577 provincial seats that are being fought. They include 297 seats of the Punjab Assembly. The PML-Q has just six competitors in the run. The KP has a total of ninety-nine seats. The PML-Q has only five contestants in the race.

The twenty seats where the PML-Q leaders are testing their luck include nine national and eleven provincial constituencies. Senior PML-Q leader Chaudhry Pervez Elahi is vying for NA-69 Gujrat and is pitched against his own cousin Chaudhry Mubashir, who stands for the PML-N. Hussain Elahi, the nephew of Pervez Elahi and PML-Q President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, is fighting for NA-68 Gujrat and is facing PML-N’s Nawabzada Ghazanfar Gul.

Pervez Elahi is also contesting for NA-65 Chakwal. PML-N representative Faez Malik is pitched against him. The NA-172 Bahawalnagar is the fourth National Assembly seat in Punjab where PML-Q’s nominee is Tariq Bashir Cheema.

In Punjab, Punjab Assembly seat PP-24 Chakwal is being contested by PML-Q’s Ammar Yasin. PML-N’s Shehryar Malik is facing him.

PML-Q representative Shujaat Nawaz is aspiring for PP-28 Gujrat. PML-N’s Nawabzada Haider Mehdi is pitched against him.

Pervez Elahi is also vying for PP-30 Gujrat and has been challenged by PML-N’s Zulfikar Warraich.

In Bahawalpur PP-249, PML-Q candidate Ehsanul Haq is fighting against Khalid Mehmood Jajja of the PML-N. Muhammad Afzal is the PML-Q nominee in PP-250 and is confronted by Saad Masood.

The PML-Q has fielded Sana Haseeb in PP-252 Bahawalpur while the PML-N has sponsored Shoaib Awais. No PTI candidates have been fielded in these federal and provincial constituencies of Punjab.

In NA-5 Upper Dir of KP, the PML-Q has put forward Umarzeb. The PTI has Sahibzada Subghatullah, the PML-N has Nisar Khan and the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) has Najamuddin Khan in the fight.

In NA-11 Kohistan, Mehboobullah Jan represents the PML-Q while the PTI has sponsored Aurangzeb. In NA-14 Mansehra, the PML-Q’s nominee Fakhurruzaman is fighting against PTI’s Zar Gul Khan. In NA-17 Haripur, Hamid Shah belongs to the PML-Q while Umar Ayub to the PTI.

In NA-19 Swabi, the PML-Q sponsored Kashif Ahmad while the PTI put up Usman Khan. In NA-34 Karak, Hasib Ahmed Farooqi hails from the PML-Q while Shahid Ahmed from the PTI.

In the KP provincial seats, Zainul Marifeen of the PML-Q is confronted by Taj Muhammad of the PTI in PK-29. In PK-33 Mansehra, Wajeeh Zaman belongs to the PML-Q and Farid Salahuddin to the PTI.

In PK-41 Haripur, the PML-N fielded Adil Hameed against PTI’s Arshad Ayub Khan. In PK-68 Peshawar, Mir Afzal Khan hails from the PML-Q against PTI’s Arbabd Jehandad Daudzai. In PK-78 Peshawar, the PML-Q sponsored Javed Nasim against PTI’s Muhammad Irfan.