PTI indecision over award of tickets in Shangla causes uncertainty

PESHAWAR: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has yet to formally issue the ticket to Nawaz Mehmood for the NA-10 constituency in Shangla even though he was earlier finalised for the award of the ticket.

According to sources, the delay in formally announcing his ticket is causing uncertainty and depriving him of precious time to run his campaign.

One of the reasons for the delay in notifying Nawaz Mehmood as the PTI candidate from NA-10 Shangla seems to be the status of Shaukat Yousafzai, a former provincial health minister who was later sacked on the instructions of Imran Khan and was initially even denied the party ticket for his previous constituency, PK-77 Peshawar, and also from his native Shangla. Though Shaukat Yousafzai is now being given the PTI ticket to contest from PK-23 Shangla, he is adamant that he wants the ticket from PK-77 Peshawar where the party has already announced the award of ticket to a PTI activist Kamran Bangash.

Nawaz Mehmood has been a non-controversial candidate from Shangla and there was no opposition to his candidature from NA-10 Shangla where his opponent is likely to be the PML-N provincial President Amir Muqam.

Some party workers had held a press conference a few days ago in Alpuri in Shangla protesting the award of PTI ticket to Waqar Ahmad Khan from PK-23 as they wanted Shaukat Yousafzai to be given the ticket from the constituency. There was also local opposition to the award of PTI ticket to Abdul Mulan, the brother of former PTI lawmaker Abdul Monem who was disqualified some months ago by the court for failing to disclose that he was a government employee when he contested the election in May 2013. Other PTI activists were hoping to get the ticket for this constituency, PK-24 Shangla, but it has been given to the brother of the disqualified lawmaker Abdul Monem.

The ANP has already tickets to its candidates and they are busy campaigning. The MMA is facing differences in its ranks over the award of tickets. The PML-N, which has been winning the lone National Assembly seat and one provincial assembly seat from Shangla, is hoping to repeat its past performance due to the development work done by the party’s federal government during the past five years. The PTI has also managed to create its vote-bank in Shangla but indecision and delay over the award of the party tickets could affect its chances of victory in the polls.