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PESHAWAR: The Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) on Tuesday withdrew its candidate Khalid Waqar Chamkani in the by-election for NA-4 (Peshawar) National Assembly seat in favour of Nasir Khan Musazai, the candidate fielded by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).
The decision was taken following a meeting between former prime minster Nawaz Sharif and JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rahman at Punjab House in Islamabad, where they discussed current issues and agreed to field a joint candidate in the by-election.
The announcement came from JUI-F provincial emir Maulana Gul Naseeb Khan at a joint press conference held at the JUI-F secretariat in Peshawar, where he was accompanied by Adviser to the Prime Minister Engineer Amir Muqam and National Assembly Deputy Speaker Murtaza Javed Abbasi. Mr Chamkani and Mr Musazai were also present.
Seat had fallen vacant following the death of PTI’s MNA Gulzar Khan
The National Assembly seat had fallen vacant following the death of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf’s (PTI) MNA Gulzar Khan on Aug 28.
Mr Khan hailed from Mashogagar village, located in the suburbs of the capital city, and though he was said to have been unhappy with the PTI, he had not left the party.
Speaking at the press conference, the JUI-F provincial emir announced that the top leaders of the JUI-F and the PML-N had met in Islamabad, and after consulting with their local office-bearers, the JUI-F had decided to support the PML-N’s candidate.
Mr Muqam thanked the JUI-F’s leaders for supporting them in the by-election, and added that both political parties were allies in the federal government. He expressed the hope that their unity and cooperation would continue in future.
The PML-N leader said that the PTI had been trying to forge an alliance with other political parties but no one was willing to work with them because of their immature political policies. He said MNA Gulzar Khan had secured over 55,000 votes in the 2013 general elections, but this by-election would gauge the popularity graph of political parties ahead of next year’s general elections.
Mr Muqam said that PTI chairman Imran Khan had already admitted in an interview with the BBC that his party was not capable of running the affairs of the government. The PTI-led government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had failed to fulfil its commitments to the people of the province, he said, adding that poverty was on the rise there and the province had regressed in terms of development.
Qaumi Watan Party (QWP) chairman Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao has also announced his support for the PML-N’s candidate. While the QWP had not nominated a candidate on the seat, party activist Niaz-ur-Rahman, who had submitted nomination papers as an independent candidate, withdrew his nomination in favour of the PML-N’s nominee.
In the 2013 general elections, the PTI candidate had secured 55,134 votes, PML-N’s Nasir Musazi had obtained 20,412 votes, and the JUI-F’s candidate, Arbab Kamal, had secured 12,519 votes. The QWP’s candidate, Mian Abdul Lateef, had obtained 759 votes, Jamaat-i-Islami’s (JI) Sabir Hussain Awan had secured 16,493 votes, the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) candidate Misbahuddin had won over 12,000 votes and the Awami National Party’s (ANP) candidate Arbab Ayub Jan had won 15,795 votes.
PTI’s MNA Gulzar Khan and ANP’s Arbab Ayub Jan have since passed away, while JUI-F’s Arbab Kamal has joined the ANP and is presently serving as the naib nazim of Town-4, Peshawar.
Of the candidates contesting the by-election, only Mr Musazai had contested the previous election from the constituency. The rest of the candidates are new.
The JI has replaced its previous candidate with Wisal Farooq and the ANP has nominated Advocate Khushdil Khan to contest the by-election scheduled for Oct 26. The PPP has given its ticket to Gulzar Khan’s son Asad Gulzar, while the PTI has nominated Arbab Aamir Ayub as its candidate.
Several independent candidates are also contesting the by-election but the leaders of various political parties have begun visiting them to convince them to withdraw their nominations.
The last date to withdraw candidature is Oct 3, and the revised list of candidates will be published on Oct 4. The last date for filing appeals against the decisions of the returning officer is Sept 27 (today), and the final date for decisions on appeals by the appellate tribunal is Oct 2.
Polling will be held on Oct 26 between all major parties who are looking at the by-election as a challenge to prove their popularity ahead of the next general elections.
Published in Dawn, September 27th, 2017
