Maryam likely to contest polls from NA-125

A PML-N stronghold, constituency has marked wins for both her parents

LAHORE : Deposed Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s political heir, Maryam Nawaz has seemingly decided to formally enter the political arena by contesting for the NA-125 constituency, which was previously recognised as NA-120.

Adding weight to the speculations, Maryam, on Wednesday acquired nomination papers for the said constituency to contest the July 25 general election. Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb has however denied reports of any party ticket having been allotted to her as yet.

“A decision on party tickets from Lahore has yet to be made, said the former information minister, while former federal minister and PML-N Lahore President Pervaiz Malik termed Maryam’s decision to contest polls a good omen.



No surprise

Keeping facts in sight, Maryam’s decision to contest elections comes as no surprise. The party’s senior leader Rana Sanaullah had earlier this week confirmed that she would contest for a seat from Lahore. Similarly, according to another senior member of the PML-N, it was an open secret in the party since 2013 that Maryam would eventually contest the 2018 polls. He said that after Sharif was disqualified in 2017, it was more than evident that his heiress would contest from their home turf.

The senior member further said that even when she wasn’t formally involved in politics, Maryam bagged victories from the very same region twice, once for her father in 2013 and again in 2017 for mother Begum Kulsum Nawaz by holding rallies and addressing massive turnouts.



According to sources, Hamza Shehbaz was sidelined from the by-election campaign to allow Maryam to ascend from being just Sharif’s daughter to an influential figure not just within PML-N but in national political and Kulsum’s victory marked her first big feat.

Like other mainstream politicians, Maryam was also embroiled in controversies during her stay in the PM house. Chief amongst those were controversies that strained Sharif’s relations with the military establishment. It is also believed that she served as Sharif’s unofficial adviser.