Voters gear up as NA-120 polling day nears

PML-N and PTI are main contenders among two dozen candidates

LAHORE: Political activities in National Assembly constituency NA-120 are in full swing as polling day is approaching fast.

The seat fell vacant after the Supreme Court disqualified former prime minister Nawaz Sharif in the Panama Papers case. Public gatherings, corner meetings and door-to-door electioneering, especially of activists of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), are gaining momentum in every nook and cranny of the constituency.



PTI’s candidate Dr Yasmin Rashid and PPP’s Faisal Meer, along with their party leaders, workers and supporters, are running their campaigns. At the same time, Maryam Nawaz is in charge of garnering support for her mother Kulsoom Nawaz, who is undergoing cancer treatment in London.

Almost all major roads and commercial areas of the NA-120 constituency are filled with banners of political parties. Party songs are being played at full volume in and around the election offices, thus charging up activists for what is predicted to be a heated contest for the vacant seat.

Although over two dozen candidates are in the running, it is believed that the main contest is between PTI’s Dr Yasmin Rashid and PML-N’s Kulsoom Nawaz.



Speaking to The Express Tribune, Kamran Mughal, a resident of Abdali Road, said most people in his area supported and voted for PML-N only because of its performance. “Despite the strong criticism, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has changed the face of the city,” he said.

Replying to a question, Mughal said former premier Nawaz has not been disqualified over corruption in the Panama Papers case. “It is the only case in the history of the country where the accused is punished before a trial,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 13^th, 2017.