SWABI, Dec 9: Internal differences and personal rivalries among leaders of various political parties have affected electioneering in Swabi district.

Until the announcement of general elections, the PML(Q) was the most active party at the district level, but after the return of PML (N) leader Nawaz Sharif and Gen Pervez Musharraf move of relinquishing his military post, the proponents of the king’s party are showing disinterest in keeping it intact.

The first shot was fired by the family of district nazim Shahram Khan when his two uncles — Usman Khan Tarakai, contesting election from NA-12 (Swabi-I) and Javed Iqbal Tarakai, contesting from PF-32 (Swabi-II) — decided to contest the elections from the platform of the Swabi Jamhoori Ittehad (SJI) instead of running for the seats as PML candidates.

“Because of this factor, PML’s NWFP president Amir Muqam decided not to run for elections from NA-13 (Swabi-II),” said a party insider. “Now PML’s Sajjad Ahmad has filed nomination papers for NA-13 and PF-35 (Swabi-V), and former provincial food minister Ghafoor Khan Jadoon is contesting from elsewhere in the district.”

“Mr Jadoon’s nephew, Sher Ali Khan, is also contesting election from PF-36, (Swabi-VI),” he said.

Another PML leader, Asad Zaman, instead of accepting the PML ticket, is contesting elections as an independent candidate.

Schisms also appeared in the PPP (Sherpao).

Sardar Ali, the runner-up candidate in the 2002 elections from PF-34, is contesting polls as an independent candidate after the party awarded ticket to Abdul Karim, son of late Abdul Raziq Khan, who remained provincial minister as well as adviser to Mr Sherpao when he was the NWFP chief minister.

The JUI (F) is divided into two factions in the district after one of its former legislators Maulana Khalil Ahmad formed his own group called the JUI ‘Haqiqi’ after developing differences with former NWFP education minister Maulana Fazal Ali. Candidates of both factions are running for elections from the district.

The Jamaat-i-Islami leaders have categorically stated that the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal did not exist in Swabi.

The ANP was also shaken up badly when Sarwar Khan, who works as manager in a local bank branch, retuned the party ticket and gave up the idea of contesting election from PF-35. Later, the ANP ticket was awarded to Sikandar Irfan in this constituency by toss.

There are also reports about a kind of a revolt against former MPA Sarfaraz Khan Jadoon, whose role remains extremely controversial.

He was expelled from the party along with former MPAs Syed Kalb-i-Hasan of Kohat and Atiqur Rehman of Hangu for betraying the party in Senate elections. Not only did he manage to win back the party’s confidence, but he was also awarded the party ticket.