The region where Mianwali is located is dominated by the Afgan Niazi tribe. Hence, most of its population is ethnically Pashtun. Other major castes and tribes in the area are Syed, Jat, Qureshi, Awan and Baloch. The district is a popular recruitment area for the military and houses important installations including the Chashma Nuclear Power Plant. The site of the proposed Kalabagh Dam is also located in the district.

One of the most known and feared provincial governors during Ayub Khan’s regime, Nawab Amir Mohammad Khan, hailed from Mianwali, as does cricketer-turned-politician, Imran Khan. Politician Dr Sher Afgan Niazi, singer Attaullah Niazi and General Amir Abdullah Niazi are the other prominent personalities from the area. Similarly, the late Maulana Abdul Sattar Khan Niazi, a well known religious politician who won elections to the National Assembly from the area a number of times, was also from Mianwali. He shot to prominence during the anti-Ahmedi movement in the early 1950s.

Constituencies:

NA71:

Imran Khan of the PTI won this seat in 2002, beating Obaidullah Khan Shadikhel of the PMLQ by 6,000 votes. For the 2008 elections the PMLQ gave its ticket to Amanatullah Khan Shadikhel whose cousin is the nazim of the district’s Isakhel tehsil. However, Shadikhel later returned the ticket and is now contesting the election as an independent candidate. Inamullah Khan Niazi has been fielded by the PMLN and Sardar Bahadur Babar Khan is representing the PPP.

NA72:

In 2002, PPP’s Dr Sher Afgan Niazi won against Malik Mohammad Feroz Joya of the PMLQ, garnering 4,000 more votes than his rival. Niazi later joined the PMLQ and was made federal minister for parliamentary affairs. He will contest the seat again in February, bolstered by the knowledge that his son is the nazim of Mianwali tehsil. Inamullah Khan Niazi is the PMLN candidate for this seat. Earlier reports that Imran Khan intended to stand for election from this constituency made this seem like an exciting contest but the cricket legend has since decided to boycott the elections. Another important contender here is Humair Hayat Rokhri, an independent candidate. A member of the influential Rokhri family whose members have won national and provincial assembly contests from the area, Humair is a contestant that cannot be ignored.