PTI names candidate for PK-30 by-election

MANSEHRA: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has nominated former provincial minister Ahmad Hussain Shah as its contender for by-election on PK-30.

The seat had fallen vacant after Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz MPA Mian Ziaur Rehman was disqualified by the Supreme Court of Pakistan in a fake degree case earlier this year. The by-election would be held on February 26 next year.

The returning officer started receiving nomination papers on Saturday (December 29) while the aspirants can submit their nomination papers until January 1, 2019. PTI MPA Babar Saleem Swati, who is also district president of the party, told reporters that Chief Minister Mahmood Khan handed over the party ticket to Ahmad Hussain Shah at a function, which was attended by MNA Saleh Mohammad Khan.

Shah, who was the president of Pakistan People’s Party in Hazara division, quit his party and joined PTI to avail the ticket in the by-election last month.

He had lost to Mian Ziaur Rehman with a margin of around 300 votes in general elections.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, which had authorised former federal minister Sardar Mohammad Yousaf to choose a suitable candidate to retain the seat, is still in consultations to finalise the name.

Passengers deprived of cash, valuables in Mansehra: The highwaymen deprived passengers of as many as 17 vehicles of cash, gold ornaments, mobile phones and wristwatches on Mansehra-Naran-Jalkhad road in the wee hours of Saturday, police and local sources said.

“Five masked gunmen blocked the road in Damgalla area and deprived men and women passengers of their valuables and fled the scene,” said Khursheed Zaman, one of the affected passengers.

The armed robbers, who threatened passengers with dire consequence, received whatever was in pockets of people and their vehicles.

“Would you believe they even didn’t spare a six-year-old girl and removed her earring forcibly,” said Zaman.

He said an Indonesian family was also deprived of their cash, belongings and gold ornaments.

“They threatened us in Hindko accent to give them our mobile phones, cash and other valuables, otherwise they would kill us,” said Zaman.

He added that on completion of their task, they beat up a drive of a pickup vehicle and threw him out of his vehicle and drove it away,” he said.

The vehicle, in which the robbers fled from the scene, was later found at a distance of five kilometres by the police.

“Police has been investigating the incident and will share progress with media soon,” a police spokesman said.

Private health facility sealed in Oghi: A joint team of the Health Department and district administration has sealed a private hospital after seizing a huge quantity of non-saleable medicines of Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa health governments in Oghi.

“We have sealed the hospital where a huge quantity of non-saleable medicines of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh governments were being given to patients,” Mohammad Tauseef, the drug inspector Health Department, told reporters on Saturday.

Assistant commissioner Oghi Babar Tanoli led the crackdown against such private hospitals and health centres, which were being run without fulfilling legal formalities.

Tauseef said stock of foreign medicines was also seized by the team which were either banned in the country or prohibited because of one or other reason.

“The crackdown is still underway and more such hospitals and health care centres would also be sealed which are being run without approval of the Health Department,” he added.