ANP, PSP to take part in NA-249 by-polls

KARACHI: After the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) announced the schedule for the by-poll in Karachi’s National Assembly constituency NA-249, political parties have intensified their activities for the closely-watched contest. The constituency has fallen vacant after Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) MNA Faisal Vawda, who was also serving as the federal minister for water resources, resigned from his National Assembly membership a couple of days ago after casting his vote in the recently-held Senate elections. He has also been elected to the Senate from Sindh. The by-election will be held on April 29, according to the ECP schedule. On Sunday, two political parties, the Awami National Party (ANP) and Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP), held meetings to discuss the upcoming by-election and announced that they would take part in the poll.

In its parliamentary board meeting headed by provincial president Shahi Syed, the ANP announced that the party’s provincial vice-president and former town nazim Baldia Town Haji Aurangzeb Buneri would be its candidate in the NA-249 by-poll.

Similarly, the PSP in its central meeting decided to take part in the NA-249 by-election. In the meeting, three candidates — the party supremo Syed Mustafa Kamal, Vice Chairman and former MPA Syed Hafeezuddin and Member National Council and District Keamari President Humayun Usman submitted their nomination papers. PSP leaders told The News that the party would finalise one of the three candidates for the by-poll.

The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz has fielded its central leader and former federal minister Miftah Ismail in the by-election. The PTI has formed a five-member parliamentary board to finalise its candidate for the NA-249 by-election.

However, the PTI has asked the ECP to amend the schedule and conduct the by-election in NA-249 after Eidul Fitr on grounds that it would be difficult for political parties to run electoral campaigns during the holy month of Ramazan.

PTI Karachi chief and MPA Khurrum Sher Zaman said the fasting month of Ramazan was expected to commence on April 13, due to which it would be impossible for the candidates to run their campaigns for the by-poll. “Therefore, the date of the by-election should be fixed after Eidul Fitr,” he said.

PTI’s Vawda had won the seat during the 2018 general elections after defeating PML-N President and former Punjab chief minister Shahbaz Sharif by a narrow margin. Vawda had secured 35,344 votes while Shahbaz, polled 34,626 votes.

TLP candidate Mufti Abid Mubarak and MQM-P candidate Aslam Shah had ranked third and fourth after bagging 23,981 and 13,534 votes respectively. The Jamaat-e-Islami’s Syed Ataullah Shah had ranked fifth by securing 10,307 votes, while Pakistan Peoples Party candidate Qadir Mandokhel polled a mere 7,236 votes and ranked sixth in the competition.