Maryam, others nomination papers accepted

LAHORE: Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s daughter Maryam Nawaz was cleared to contest elections from Lahore’s NA-125 constituency Monday after the returning officer accepted her nomination papers, Geo News reported.

The decision came as RO Asif Bashir dismissed all objections raised during scrutiny of her nomination papers.

Maryam is expected to contest on the PML-N ticket to contest the July 25 general elections from Lahore’s NA-125 and NA-127 constituencies. The NA-125 constituency, situated in the heart of Lahore, was the NA-120 constituency prior to the new delimitation of constituencies.

NA-120 was bagged by former premier Nawaz Sharif in the 2013 elections and after his disqualification, by his wife Kulsoom Nawaz even though she did not take part in the campaign.

Maryam had spearheaded the NA-120 by-election campaign for her mother in 2017 following Nawaz’s disqualification. At the time, Kulsoom had defeated PTI candidate Dr Yasmin Rashid by over 14,000 votes. Dr Yasmin Rashid’s nomination papers for the constituency have also been approved.

Maryam, along with her father and husband, is facing a corruption reference in the accountability court of Islamabad in light of the Supreme Court’s verdict in the Panama Papers case last year.

She is presently in London along with her father tending to Kulsoom, who has been in the UK since August last year after being diagnosed with throat cancer.

Moreover, during scrutiny of nomination papers across the country Monday, the nomination papers of PML-N Abid Sher Ali, PPP’s Shehla Raza and MQM’s Rauf Siddiqui and Kamran Tessori were also approved.

Abid Sher Ali, the former state minister for power, is contesting from Faisalabad’s NA-108 constituency while Shehla Raza, the former deputy speaker of the Sindh Assembly, is contesting from Karachi’s NA-243.

National Assembly’s former speaker Dr Fehmida Mirza’s nomination papers were accepted for NA-230 in Badin as well as those of PPP’s Rasool Bux Chandio.