DADU, May 7: Election battlefield in Dadu and Jamshoro districts is all set to witness a neck-and-neck fight among political titans in PML-N leader Liaquat Ali Jatoi, Sindh United Party chief Syed Jalal Memhood Shah, former PPP stalwart Syed Zaffar Ali Shah, self-styled King of Kohistan, Malik Asad Sikandar, and PPP’s Pir Mazharul Haq who is canvassing for his son.

Each vote will literally count in turning around or turning upside down fortunes in the district which has mostly voted Pakistan Peoples Party candidates to power in successive elections.

There are reports the PPP candidates are facing the brunt of their voters’ anger wherever they go for campaigning but the party leaders outright deny such reports.

Former veteran PPP leader and now a PML-N candidate Syed Zaffar Ali Shah is pitted against Pir Mujeebul Haq, son of PPP leader and former minister for education Pir Mazharul Haq, and Syed Mohammad Shah of PML-F for PS-74 (Dadu). A veteran PPP leader Baban Khan Panhwar is also in the run as an independent candidate.

Former chief minister and federal minister in Nawaz Sharif’s cabinet Liaquat Ali Khan Jatoi faces a relatively weak rival in Ms Kosar Parveen for PS-76 but he will have to shed some sweat to snatch NA-233 (Khairpur Nathan Shah-Mehar) from PPP’s Imran Zaffar Leghari.

SUP chairman Syed Jalal Mehmood Shah will have to lock horns with PPP’s Sardar Malik Asad Sikandar, the self-styled King of Kohistan, for NA-231 (Jamshoro). Malik, an indisputable chief of the district, has a reputation for winning elections by any means.

Pir Mazhar who has won almost all elections he has participated in opted not to fight this election for a variety of reasons and fielded his son Pir Mujeeb. He and his son had to face people’s rage when they visited Mazdoorabad and Khokhar Mohalla in Dadu.

There are reports villagers in Budhal Panhwar and Purano Deero pelted the motorcade of the father and son with sticks, stones and rotten vegetables and forced them to return but Pir Mazhar rejects these reports and insists nothing of the sort has happened.

Veteran PPP leader Baban Khan is in the run beside Pir Mujeeb under protest against Pir Mazhar and other PPP MNAs and MPAs who, he said, had cold shouldered him during five years of the party rule. Although he wields sizable influence in the district he will not be able to win and prove to be a vote spoiler.

Former PPP stalwart and now a PML-N candidate Syed Zaffar Ali Shah is trying to cash in on alienated PPP voters. He says Pir Mujeeb and his family members are using government machinery in electioneering and government officers are attending his corner meetings.

He had submitted an application to the office of returning officer, with documentary evidence that Pir Mazhar’s wife Shahnaz Begum, an an additional secretary in education department, was campaigning for her son. She was freely visiting educational institutions and forcing staff to support her son, he said.

Dadu Mukhtiarkar Naeem Vistro, chairman of marketing committee Saifullah Panhwar and chairman of district Zakat committee Kazi Imtiaz were some of the officers who were openly supporting the PPP candidate, he said.

Syed Mohammad Shah, a PML-F candidate for PS-74, agreed with Mr Shah and said that officers in education department and district administration were openly canvassing for Pir Mujeeb. Transfers and postings were being made in the revenue and other departments on the directives of Pir Mazhar, he alleged.

Pir Mazhar’s wife and daughter were going door to door to canvass for Pir Mujeeb, he said and appealed to the election commission to take notice of what he termed the brazen violation of its code of conduct.

PML-N candidate Karim Ali Jatoi, son of Liaquat Ali Jatoi, is running beside PPP’s Rafique Ahmed Jamali in the race for NA-232 (Dadu) while Dr Bandah Ali Leghari of PML-N and Syed Ghulam Shah Jilani of PPP are in fray for PS-75 (Johi).

Liaquat Jatoi appears to be a sound candidate for PS-76 and NA-233 (Khairpur Nathan Shah-Mehar). He faces a relatively weak contender in Kosar Parveen, wife of engineer Abdul Aziz Junejo, for PS-76 (Khairpur Nathan Shah).

A new face in politics, she hoped people would elect her in deference to her late father-in-law Haji Amir Bux Junejo who had remained an MPA and wielded great influence in the town.

Liaquat Jatoi said in speeches at public meetings at K.N. Shah and Gozo towns that PPP MPAs and MNAs had embezzled millions of rupees of taxpayers’ money and they were bound to lose all seats of PS-74, PS-75, PS-76, PS-77 and NA-232 and 233.

But his rival PPP’s Imran Zaffar Leghari rejoined that he would be able to turn around support for PPP by bringing together all disgruntled activists and leaders at one platform.

Sardar Asharf, a disgruntled PPP leader, was also in the run for NA-233 as an independent candidate but he retired in support of Imran Leghari a few days ago.

On PS-77 (Mehar), the real fight is between PPP candidate Fayyaz Butt and PML-N’s Sadaqat Ali Jatoi, younger brother of Liaquat Jatoi.

In Jamshoro, self-styled King of Kohistan and PPP candidate Sardar Malik Asad Sikandar who is an indisputable chief of almost all communities living in the district is flexing muscles to take on SUP chairman Syed Jalal Mehmood in contest for NA-231.

Despite having support of the 10-party alliance, Syed Jalal is not strong enough to withstand the might and influence of Malik Asad.

Syed Jalal, a grandson of the founder of Jeay Sindh Tehreek late G.M. Syed, is also in the run for PS-71 (Kotri) against PPP candidate Dr Sikandar Shoro. He has sizable support in Manjhand, Sann and Lakha areas. MQM candidate Pir Zaman Shah is another contestant for NA-231 and PS-71.

Malik Asad is reported to have said in speeches at public meetings that he and his candidates were always elected MPAs and MNAs in Jamshoro. He hoped he would again win NA-231 and his party candidates would sweep PS-71, PS-72 (Thana Bula Khan) and PS-73 (Sehwan).

A neck-and-neck fight is expected between PPP candidate Faqir Dad Khoso, Malik Changez of PML-N and Ramesh Gupta of PML-F for PS-72 but PPP’s Khoso appears stronger than all his rivals because he is being supported by Malik Asad.

PPP candidate Syed Murad Ali Shah, PML-N’s Habibullah Rind and PML-F’s Sardar Chakar Khan Shahani are some of the main contestants for PS-73.