SAHIWAL: The decision of the candidates for NA-141, NA-142 and NA-143 is becoming a dilemma for the PML-N while the situation has been exasperated by the seat adjustment with the Istehkam-i-Pakistan Party (IPP).

The ticket of Pir Imran Shah, a three times consecutive winner from NA-141, has been withheld by the PML-N high command because the IPP wanted the seat for its own candidate, Chaudhry Nouraiz Shakoor Khan, under the seat adjustment. Chaudhry Muhammad Ashraf, two times winner for the PML-N from NA-142, is facing difficulties in securing his ticket from new aspirants from the Lodhis of Harappa city.

Pir Imran Shah, the president of the PML-N’s Ulema Mashaikh wing, had won 2008, 2013 and 2018 general election on the party ticket. Nouraiz Shakoor was the winner on a PPP ticket in 2002 but was defeated by Pir Imran Shah of the PML-N in 2018 when he was contesting on the PTI ticket.

Interestingly, Nouraiz Shakoor, after winning the 2002 election, had defected to Gen Musharraf along with Faisal Saleh Hayat and Rao Sinkander. Later, he got the post of Federal Minister for Science and Technology by the former dictator. Nouraiz was a diehard PPP starlet since his youth and was a member of the PPP central executive committee of PPP during Benazir Bhutto’s time. Benazir had expelled him from the party, saying he had stabbed the party in the back. Later, he joined the PML-Q and later the PTI that awarded a ticket to his son, Ali Nouraz Shakoor, in 2013 and later to him in 2018 but both times he lost to Pir Imran Shah.

Now Nouraiz Shakoor has again shifted his loyalties to the IPP and is one of the key aspirants from Jahangir Tareen’s core committee negotiating with the PML-N. It is said that the PML-N has not awarded a ticket to Pir Imran Shah and is waiting for the final outcome of deal with the IPP.

This is such a confusing situation for a diehard party man like Pir Imran Shah who is waiting for his ticket within his party which is also considering a turncoat in the election alliance.

In the same manner, under the seat adjustment, the PML-N is holding back a ticket from PP-202 Kasowal where Nouman Langriyal had won the 2018 election on a PTI ticket by defeating Shahid Munir, the PML-N aspirant of the same seat under the PPP seat adjustment with PML-N.

It is important to note that Sahiwal district is the stronghold of the PML-N and now this stronghold would face further loss under the seat adjustment with the IPP because the party is demanding two seats for Sahiwal district.

Chaudhry Ashraf has won NA-142 seat twice for the PML-N but now Ayesha Lodhi, the wife of Naveed Khan Lodhi, is also an aspirant of the same ticket from Harappa. The NA-143 traditionally belongs to Rai of Chichawatni. Rai Hasan Nawaz and Rai Murtaza Iqbal had won this seat in 2018 and 2013. Rai is still standing by Imran Khan.

Rai Hasan Nawaz, who served as the PTI core committee member and President West Punjab, was recently made PTI President Sahiwal Division. The PML-N has no option but to award a ticket to Jatts of Chichawatni from NA-143. Chaudhry Muhammad Tufail Jatt and his brother simultaneously won MNA and MPA seats in the 2018 election on the PML-N ticket from NA-143.

Published in Dawn, December 22nd, 2023