PML-N gives some tickets to new faces for Senate polls

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has awarded tickets to a few new faces for the March 3 Senate elections while opting for six of its eight outgoing MPs with the Rawalpindi division taking the lion’s share out of the Punjab nominations.
The number of candidates, 19, fielded by the ruling party is by and large the same as it is sure to win in view of its numerical strength in the four assemblies except Sindh. It has thus made an effort to keep the exercise transparent. In Sindh, it has no chance to get its solitary nominee elected. There are clear indications that the PML-N will clinch around eighteen seats to push its total tally in the Senate to twenty-six, including the eight sitting senators.
However, there are some leading dropouts like Adviser on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Irfan Siddiqui and Chaudhry Jaffar Iqbal, who are naturally unhappy for having been left out.
Although there is no constitutional or legal bar, candidates have been accorded sponsorships from the provinces other than those of their actual domicile.PML-N Secretary General Zafar Iqbal Jhagra, who hails from KP, has been selected for the federal capital seat.
This means that he has transferred his vote to Islamabad because it is constitutionally mandatory that the name of a candidate should appear on the electoral rolls of the province/area wherehe wants to vie for the Senate.
If it was found at any stage that he was also simultaneously listed in the voters’ list of another place, he will stand disqualified. Jhagra had applied for PML-N nominations from the KP as well as the federal area. Interestingly, the PML-N has not so far announced any covering candidate for him.
Old committed Leaguer Nihal Hashmi, who belongs to Sindh, has been sponsored by the ruling party from Punjab. Same is the case with Raheela Magsi, former Nazima of district Tando Allahyar, who comes from Sindh. She has been put up for the special woman federal seat, which will be elected by the National Assembly. She joined the PML-N in March 2013.
Kiran Dar, who will be a new face in the Senate, sounds a new name, but she was earlier member of the Punjab assembly on the PML-N ticket and has been a loyal party leader.
Dr Ghous Niazi is also a new face. He is the president of the PML-N, Khushab, and contested the 2002 general elections on the PML-N ticket. He lost by getting 23,074 votes as against the winner, independent Saifullah Tiwana, and runner-up Shabbir Awan of the PML-Q. He is also counted among those who have stood with the PML-N.
Political Secretary to the Prime Minister Dr Asif Kirmani, who belongs to a distinguished family of Lahore and his father was a committed Leaguer, is also a new face in the Senate.
Former member of the Punjab Assembly Chaudhry Tanvir, who has been on the sidelines of the party and has been quite inactive since long, has been preferred. His nomination has not been received well by one of his noted party fellows, who is a powerful federal minister. Chaudhry Tanvir, who is a moneyed man, could not contest previous general elections for lacking the university qualification and also due to his involvement in the Supreme Court storming case.
The Rawalpindi division takes pride in contributing Pervaiz Rashid (settled in Lahore), Mushahidullah Khan, Chaudhry Tanvir, Lt-Gen (R) Abdul Qayyum, Raja Zafarullah and Najma Hameed.
Another important highlight of the Punjab nominations is that they have not been given to fabulously rich people, tycoons or industrialists. Rather, most of the candidates, including Pervaiz Rashid, Nihal Hashmi, Mushahidullah Khan, Kiran Dar, Dr Asif Kirmani, Prof Sajid Mir and Raja Zafarullah belong to the middle class.
In addition, former generals—Abdul Qayyum and Salahuddin Tirmizi—have been preferred over ex-bureaucrats like Tariq Fatemi.It appears from the nominations that the PML-N is certain to get all the eleven seats from Punjab, four seats from Balochistan, two seats from Islamabad, and a minority seat from the federal capital.