supported on the National Assembly seat in return for its support in the provincial assembly constituencies.
The deal shows that PPP and ANP were more interested in securing the provincial assembly seats instead of the National Assembly where the JI position seems stronger. In PK-94 the main contest is between former minister Mahmood Zeb Khan of PPP and Muzaffar Said of the JI. ANP’s Ayub Khan, JUI-F’s Qazi Ayazuddin and Qaumi Watan Party’s Arshad Khan are also in the run.
The ANP has improved its vote bank in the constituency and unlike the past, the nationalist party can change the scenario. Rashid Advocate, a PTI leader and former Muslim Leaguer and Malik Dilawar, the uncle of Malik Sher Bahadur of JI also joined ANP, making the party position stable to some extent. In PK-96 Zamin Khan of the PPP, Said Gul of JI, ANP’s Naeem Jan, PTI’s Khan Sherin and JUI-F’s Shakirullah are in the field. However the real contest is between PPP and JI. The dismal performance of PPP government and intra-party rift can prove damaging for the party despite the fact its nominee has popular support. The JI is confident of winning the seat though Zamin Khan is sparing no efforts to retain it. It was won by JI in the 2002 and PPP in the 2008 general election.
In PK-95 tough contest is expected between Sirajul Haq of the JI and ANP’s Hidayatullah. Both the parties have solid votes in the constituency and claims and counter claims of victory are being made by the two arch rivals.
In PK-97 Lower Dir, former MPA Dr Zakirullah Khan of the PPP, Sultanat Yar of JI, ex-MPA Bakht Bedar of QWP, Hussain Shah Yousafzai of the ANP, Fakhr-uz-Zaman of the PTI and PML-N’s Ikram Ghani are the contestants. The constituency is a traditional stronghold of the PPP and JI as both won the seat in the past.
However, this time QWP is in stronger position compared to PPP. The real contest on the seat would be between candidates of the JI, QWP and PPP. Independent observers believe Bakht Bedar’s position seems stronger due to his welfare activities and social contacts.