ATTOCK, April 17: The Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaf (PTI) aspirant Sardar Mumtaz Khan has decided to run for the provincial assembly constituency (PP-19) as an independent after he was denied the party ticket.

Mr. Mumtaz and ex-provincial minister Sardar Sikandar Hayat of the PTI had applied for the tickets of PP-19 and NA-59 seats respectively.

However, the PTI leadership decided to award the provincial ticket to former Member of Provincial Assembly (MPA) Pir Abbas Mohiuddin, and the national assembly ticket to ex-MPA Sardar Mohammad Ali. This was done on the recommendation of PTI central leader Malik Sohail, who is also an aspirant from NA-58, Attock.

The move   has disappointed both applicants, who termed it wrong and unjustified. Mr Mumtaz said Mr Sohail had sought revenge, as both he and Sohail had grown differences following the intra-party elections for the district president. He said Mr Sohail had supported his rival, Waheed Murad, which had led to his (Mr Mumtaz’) failure.

“Malik Sohail not only opposed me but also Sikandar’s nomination for NA-59,” said Mr Mumtaz, who had played an important role in bringing Mr. Sikandar from the Pakistan People’s Party to the PTI last month.

Similarly, Mr Mumtaz said the party had made a mistake in not awarding the ticket to ex-MPA Khurram Ali Khan for PP-18, choosing former Pakistan Muslim League-Q provincial minister Col (retired) Malik Anwar instead.

“I have decided to contest the elections as an independent, so that I can prove myself and also decrease support for Malik Sohail, as PP-19 and NA-58 are based in the same area,” Mr Mumtaz said.

When asked whether the decision would cause a setback to the PTI, Mr Mumtaz replied in affirmative, adding that Mr. Sohail would be responsible for it.“It is not a trivial matter that our sacrifices for the party are ignored in one go. We had strengthened the party in Attock as pioneer of PTI leaders,” he said.

When contacted,   PTI leader Mr Sohail said the tickets of NA-59, PP-18 and PP-19 had been awarded based on merit, which was decided by the party after examining all aspects.He confirmed that the tickets were given to Mr. Mohammad Ali, Mr Anwar and Mr. Pir Abbas on his recommendations. However, he said unsuccessful leaders needed to work for the party’s victory collectively, instead of initiating a rivalry for individual interests.

“Naturally, a party can consider only one aspirant for any seat and this fact should be realised by everyone,” he added.