August 18, 2002	Sunday	Jamadi-us-Saani 8, 1423

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ISLAMABAD Aug 17: National Alliance, a pro-Musharraf conglomerate of six parties, has started finalizing the lists of its candidates for national and provincial assemblies with a view to making adjust-ments with its new ally, Pakis-tan Muslim League (Quaid-i-Azam).

The alliance had reached an agreement with the PML(Q) to leave a constituency where a sure winning candidate is available with the PML(Q).

Alliance secretary-general Mohammad Ali Durrani told newsmen on Saturday that a meeting of the alliance’s central executive, presided over by Ghulam Mustafa Jatoi and attended by the heads of all the component parties, could finalize the names only for Balochistan and Sindh rural.

He said that a total of 25 candidates for the National Assembly and 88 candidates for the provincial assembly, Sindh rural, had been finalized.

“Formulas worked out for the distribution of seats among the component parties were quite comprehensive and there was little chance of any dispute on this account,” the secretary-general said.

He said the alliance would contest the polls under the symbol of tractor.

Mr Durrani was accompanied by Millat Party’s deputy secretary-general Aila Malik, Sindh National Alliance leader Allah Bachayo, and others.

Mr Durrani Ali said that Nizam-i-Mustafa Party of Haji Hanif Tayyab had recently joined the alliance and added that many individuals and other parties would also be contesting under the alliance’s election symbol.

He said that the list of alliance candidates for Karachi would be finalized at a meeting to be held there soon and added that the names for Punjab and the NWFP would be finalized in a couple of days.