RAWALPINDI: Election campaigning is in full swing and in one such public appearance in the garrison city on Saturday, Maryam Nawaz of the Pakistan Muslim League-N took the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf head on declaring that the youth was with the PML-N and would vote for it.

At 32 years of age, the female Nawaz is the young face of the PML-N and was present in the gathering to rally women and youth around her.

She insisted that it was her father’s party which has most youngsters on its side, and PTI would have to wait until May 11 to find out how false their beliefs about the youth support for PTI was.

Maryam Nawaz shared these beliefs addressing a public gathering of women at Committee Chowk near former Gulistan Cinema.

The function was arranged by former Tehsil Nazim Sajjad Khan and his wife Dr. Tahmina Sajjad, and attended by hundreds of women.

The rally was organised by Sajjad Khan, in spite of the fact that he had not been given the PML-N ticket for PP-13 that he previously held since this time former MPA Ghulam Raza won the favour of the party bosses in this constituency.

However, Khan told Dawn that he had arranged the function for PML-N candidates Hanif Abbasi and Ghulam Raza to convey the message that the party was united and all its leaders supported each other.

“I arranged this function to mobilise the party workers and Maryam Nawaz came to convince the party workers to support the party’s men in the city area,” he said.

PML-N President Nawaz Sharif’s daughter came to NA-56 to start the election campaign for Hanif Abbasi, who is facing the PTI Chief Imran Khan himself in what is promising to be an exciting competition.

It must be noted that the ex-PM (prime minister) Nawaz Sharif’s daughter has a personal interest in this constituency since her husband Capt.

(Retired) Mohammad Safdar was elected an MNA from NA-52 (Chaklala Scheme-III area in Rawalpindi) in the bye-elections of 2008 after the seat was vacated by former opposition leader National Assembly, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan.

However, she or her husband had not visited their constituency in the last five years.

It seems that the fear of the popularity of PTI forced her into action in NA-56, where the PTI chief, Imran Khan, is himself contesting the elections.

“I have never seen Maryam or her husband Mohammad Safdar during the five years in this area, even though he has enjoyed all the perks and privileges that an MNA is entitled to,” said Kareem Khan, a resident of Garibabad, while talking to Dawn.

Mohammad Shafique, a resident of Chaklala Scheme-III NA-52, was also not aware that the former MNA Mohammad Safdar was the official representative from this constituency.

“The local people continued to go to Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan whenever they needed something and he managed to construct roads and develop infrastructure in many areas where his boards are also visible,” he said.

“Pindi-ites have always supported my father Nawaz Sharif and they will vote for him again,” Maryam Nawaz said while addressing the gathering, adding that the presence of a large number of women and young girls supports this claim.

In the rally, Maryam Nawaz promised that if elected again PML-N will provide uninterrupted supply of electricity and gas, improve transport through developing metro bus networks, and provide employment to the youth.

She urged the people to vote for ‘tiger’ if they wanted to bring their country out of the current economic crises it is steeped in.

“Nawaz Sharif made motorways, increased our foreign reserves, improved the living standards of the people and provided a level playing field for the businessmen and industrialists in the country,” she declared.

Earlier, PML-N candidate for NA-56 and former MNA, Hanif Abbasi, also said that Rawalpindi was a PML-N strong hold and the party would retain all the seats from this constituency in the upcoming elections.

He said the PML-N had provided the gifts of flyovers, hospitals and educational institutes to Rawalpindi and now they would provide facilities of Metro Bus Service and Leh Nullah Expressway here.