SWABI: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser is likely to contest the next general elections from two provincial assembly constituencies in Swabi after the new delimitation by the Election Commission of Pakistan.

Sources in Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf said that after delimitation a new scenario emerged for Mr Qaiser because various new areas had been included in his constituency and the old areas shifted to another one. He had won the previous election from then PK-35 and NA-13, Swabi, but later he opted to keep the former and vacate the NA seat. His brother Aqibullah Khan won from this National Assembly constituency in by-elections.

The sources said that during over last four years he had focused on the old constituency while in some union councils like Maneri Bala, Maneri Payan, Swabi Maneri, Swabi Khas and Saleem Khan area he would take start from zero.

They claimed that in order to ensure his success he had planned to contest the next general election from two provincial assembly constituencies.

They sources said that after Rangaiz Khan’s changing constituency it would be a good chance for Mr Qaiser to contest election from Pk-43 and PK-44.

They said that he would start visiting the two constituencies soon as part of his election campaign.

Meanwhile, Qaumi Watan Party district chairman Masood Jabar and other leaders said in a meeting that MPA Ms Meraj Humayun should immediately vacate her seat after joining PTI and tender resignation without delay because she was elected on the QWP ticket. Ms Humayun had returned on reserved seat as MPA after 2013 election.

The QWP leaders alleged that she had sold her vote in the Senate election 2015 and adopted the same strategy in the recent election. They added that PTI leaders had devised a secret plan to lure parliamentarians of other parties through different tactics, which negated the principle of democratic order in the country.

Published in Dawn, March 19th, 2018