LG elections: Two MQM candidates elected unopposed in Hyderabad Cantt

HYDERABAD:

Muttahida Qaumi Movement's (MQM) candidates have been elected unopposed in two of the 10 wards being contested in the local government elections in the Cantonment Board of Hyderabad. The remaining eight constituencies will be contested by 27 candidates.

The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has fielded candidates in all the remaining wards and the MQM in seven of them. Only two Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf's (PTI) candidates will land in the fray after nomination papers of three of their aspirants were rejected. The PTI did not file nomination forms in the five other wards. The remaining 10 candidates will be contesting in the independent capacity as other mainstream, religious and nationalist parties have apparently chosen to stay away.

The returning officer, Omer Siddique Chaudhry, who is also the executive officer of the CBH, displayed the final list of candidates along with their election symbols on Saturday.  MQM's Malik Muhammad Yasin was declared the returned candidate in ward 3, comprising the entire military garrison area, after the withdrawal of Muhammad Kabir Siddiqui, Zafar Ali and Farhan Qureshi. There are 3,817 voters in the ward.

Similarly, 4,659 people of ward 8 will also not be able to cast their vote as another MQM candidate, Abdul Aziz, has been elected unopposed. Muhammad Azam and Muhammad Imran withdrew from this ward which comprises the cantonment graveyard, katchi abadi, Shah Faisal Colony and Katcha Qila.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 12^th, 2015.