Ali Wazir, 37, is a candidate for NA-41 South Waziristan, but is forced to campaign in Rawalpindi 822 km away from his volatile hometown Wana, from where his people had to flee due to the Taliban’s influence.

For Ali Wazir, campaigning in Rawalpindi is a blessing compared to South Waziristan, where holding an election rally is no less than a disaster. For a secular leader like him, contesting general elections is suicide.

“I am here in Rawalpindi to gather my people and urge them to go to South Waziristan and cast their vote. More then 4,000 Wazirs and Mehsuds have taken refuge in this city to live peacefully,” the candidate told Dawn on Thursday after campaigning for four days.During his university life, Ali was the president of Pakhtun Students Federation (PSF), a student wing of the Awami National Party (ANP).

However, increased attacks on candidates of the party forced Ali to contest the elections independently.

Ali lost his two elder brothers to Taliban while studying in Gomal University (D.I. Khan) and the event severely affected his career in law. His brothers had been killed when he was preparing for the examination in 2004.

Ali will also campaign in Karachi where to gather the scattered people of South Waziristan.

He has chosen the slogan of education and health, since, according to him, orthodox religious elders in South Waziristan had hypnotised people even against the polio eradication campaigns.

Similarly, former Air Martial (retired) Qaisar Hussain, a candidate from NA-37 Kurram Agency, is also campaigning in the twin cities of Rawalpindi-Islamabad in order to mobilise people of Parachinar who have fled their areas due to sectarian violence.

“For candidates like us representing volatile areas, the election campaign is tricky as we have to extend our campaign beyond the limits of the constituency.

Holding a public rally in Parachinar is risky, so we go door-to-door and hold rallies in other parts of the country such as Islamabad, Karachi, Peshawar etc. where our voters are in great majority,” Mr Hussain said.

Mr Hussain recently lost his brother Dr Riaz Hussain, who had also been vying for the elections, to a terrorist attack in Peshawar.

“We have been left at the mercy of the terrorists. We cannot declare our association with any political party, so we fight independently,” the candidate said.

Sharif Khattak, a candidate of ANP for NA-15 Karak, also prefers talking to the Khattak community living in other cities, as he is vulnerable to an attack by the Taliban in his native area.

The candidate has made Islamabad the base of his campaign due to the presence of thousands of voters in the twin cities.

“Holding the party flag of ANP is an invitation to death. I have preferred Islamabad to mobilise my voters for casting their votes in Karak. I just wonder why only ANP is under attack from the militants. We will not surrender and leave the ground vacant for our rivals,” he said.