JUIF joins hands with PPP in Mansehra

MANSEHRA: Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUIF) on Wednesday announced its electoral alliance with the Pakistan People’s Party for elections for the offices of the presiding officer in five tehsils of the district.

“We waited to go into an electoral alliance with the PMLN in all the five tehsils of Mansehra district but the latter’s leadership didn’t even opt to come onto a negotiating table with us,” stated Hiydayatullah Shah, the JUIF KP deputy amir.

He said the PMLN leader Capt (r) Mohammad Safdar issued irresponsible statements against JUI-F’s alliance with PPP and twisted facts, adding that Safdar and former federal religious affairs minister Sardar Mohammad Yousuf didn’t even like to sit with the JUIF Shoora for the seat adjustment despite their party’s wish.

“The PMLN wants our party’s support for its presiding officers’ aspirants in Mansehra, Baffa-Pakhal, Balakot, Darband and Oghi and approached us for this several times but they are unwilling to support even a single aspirant of our party in all these five tehsils,” he added.

Hidayatullah said the JUIF is one of the leading political parties in the country and might consider its own political moves and interests.

“This is why our Shoorah decided to enter into an electoral alliance with the PPP, instead of PMLN,” he said.

He said that his party’s village and neighbourhood councils’ chairmen and councillors elected on reserved seats would cast votes for several candidates including Malik Mumtaz in Mansehra, Umar Haroon Khan in Baffa-Pakhal, Sajid Khan in Balakot and two independents in Darband and Oghi tehsil councils.