Imran, Bilawal file papers in Karachi

MQM-P Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui to contest polls against PTI chief at NA-243

KARACHI: The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and the Pakistan Tehreek-e- Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan were among major political figures whose nomination forms for the upcoming election were submitted at the Karachi City Courts.

The PPP chairman himself went to file the nomination papers to a returning officer amid heightened security along with other party leaders.  Bilawal is contesting from two National Assembly seats – the NA-246 of Karachi’s Lyari area and the NA-200 of Larkana.

Bilawal’s sister Asefa Bhutto also got the nomination forms to contest the election from the Sindh Assembly seat PS-10 at Rato Dero.  She is also a covering candidate of Bilawal Bhutto in Larkana.

The PTI chief Imran Khan has submitted nomination form to contest election from the NA-243. This constituency has been created in 2018 delimitation from the NA-252 and some section of the NA-253 falls in district east of Karachi.

This constituency includes areas of East Garden, Patel Para, Pir Illahi Bux Colony, Bahadurabad, PECHS II, Essa Nangri Gulshan-e-Iqbal Block 14, Dhoraji and Mohammad Ali Society of Sindh’s provincial capital.

In the last general election the Muttahida Quami Movement’s (MQM) Rashid Godal had won from this area defeating the Jamaat-e-Islami’s Mohammad Hussain Mehnati by bagging 91,339 votes. Interestingly Imran Khan’s nomination papers were submitted by Godal, who has recently joined the PTI.

Mustafa Kamal of the Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP) also submitted his nomination forms to contest the polls from two NA and two Sindh Assembly seats – NA-247, NA-253, PS-127, PS-124.

Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui of the MQM Bahadurabad has decided to contest against Imran Khan. However, he has not yet filed the nomination papers.

The Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) leader Irfanullah Marwat also filed his nomination forms to contest from PS-104.  Senator Mushahidullah Khan of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) filed his nomination forms for NA-249.

Arif Alvi of the PTI summited his papers for NA-247; Afaq Ahmed of the Mohajir Qaumi Movement (MQM-H) for NA-240; Imran Ismail of the PTI for PS-111 and Shahi Syed of the Awami National Party for NA-250.

Asadullah Bhutto of the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA), Khurrum Sher Zaman and Firdous Naqvi of the PTI and Iftikhar Alam of the PSP were among the prominent ones who filed their nomination papers.

113 nomination papers in K-P

A total of 113 candidates submitted their nomination papers for reserved seats of women and minorities in both the NA and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly.

According to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), a total of 65 candidates submitted their nomination papers for the K-P Assembly reserved seats for women. For reserved seats of the K-P women in the National Assembly a total of 26 candidates submitted their nomination papers.

A total of 22 candidates submitted their nomination papers in the ECP office for the K-P Assembly seats reserved for minorities.  The K-P Assembly has a total 22 reserved seats for women and in the NA while the K-P has 9 reserved seats for women. There are 3 reserved seats for minorities in the K-P Assembly.