PTI makes clean sweep in Mardan with 2 NA, 5 PA seats

PESHAWAR: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has emerged as a strong political party in Mardan district in the general election 2013 by winning two national and five provincial assembly seats.
Upsets were seen in Mardan as unknown candidates of PTI defeated their strong rivals in NA-10 and NA-11 and in five provincial assembly seats, including PK-24, PK-25, PK-26, PK-29 and PK-30.
The PTI’s newcomer Mujahid Khan won from NA-11 Mardan by defeating Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) candidate Mufti Imdadullah. Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) candidate and former winner on the seat Khanzada Khan remained third in the competition. ANP’s Inayat Khan laggeed behind in the contest.
PTI candidate Ali Muhammad Khan defeated JUI-F candidate Maulana Muhammad Qasim in NA-10 Mardan-2 constituency. Maulana Qasim was also considered to be a strong candidate as he had won this seat in 2002 and 2008 general elections.
The young candidate of PTI Tufail Anjum routed PPP leader Abdul Akbar Khan on PK-29 by a margin of about 4,000 votes. Abdul Akbar had won the seat twice in the past.According to unofficial result, Tufail Anjum secured 15,000 votes while Abdul Akbar got 11,000 votes.
A PPP worker in NA-11 and PK-29 constituencies told The News that the main reason behind the defeat of PPP candidates was differences among them. He said those party leaders who had won from the constituencies in the past didn’t support each other.
PTI candidate for PK-24 Muhammad Zahid Durrani won the seat and stunned his rival candidates, including Maulana Amanat Shah of JUI-F, Ali Khan of ANP and Abdus Samad Khan Toru of PPP. The PTI candidate on PK-25 Ubaidullah Mayar won the seat by defeating ANP’s stalwart Ghanidad Khan, who bagged the seat thrice in the past.
PTI candidate on PK-26, Iftikhar Ali Mashwani also won the seat and surprised the PPP candidate Muhammad Iftikhar Mohmand. PTI candidate on PK-30 Muhammad Atif also surprised his rivals and won the seat. The PML-N’s Azam Khan remained second in the contest.
An independent candidate Muhammad Imran Khan, who was nazim of Jalala union council and earlier in the ANP, won the PK-27 seat. PPP’s former senior minister Rahimdad Khan had won the seat in 2008 election. Rahimdad jhad fielded his son Asad Khan, who lost badly. ANP candidate Gohar Ali Bacha won election on PK-28 by defeating JUI-F’s Hafiz Akhtar, who bagged the seat in 2002 and 2008 elections, by a margin of about 2,000 votes.
Another ANP winner was former chief minister Ameer Haider Hoti, who won two seats, including NA-9 and PK-23. The former chief minister won NA-9 from PTI candidate Nasir Khan by a margin of 2,000 votes after a tough contest. He defeated PTI’s Syed Umar Farooq who was runner-up and Omar Farooq Hoti, son of PML-N leader Khwaja Mohammad Hoti, who was third.