KARACHI, May 10: The senior deputy convener of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s coordination committee, Dr Farooq Sattar on Saturday filed nomination papers as the party’s candidate for NA-255 in the upcoming by-elections.

The seat had fallen vacant due to demise of the Mohajir Qaumi Movement’s MNA, Mahmood Qureshi.

Talking to newsmen after filing the papers with the returning officer at the Judicial Complex inside the Karachi Central Prison, Dr Sattar said he was contesting with the support of other coalition partners.

He said the decision was taken after long deliberations within the party and that he was asked to return to Pakistan. He said that he was earlier called to London to look after the party affairs from the British capital.

Flanked by senior members of the party, Dr Sattar said that his top priority would be restoration of law and order, peace and amity as well as resolution of problems of the hitherto neglected area.

He hoped that the Election Commission would remain neutral and claimed that in the last elections, Muttahida candidates were not allowed to campaign in the area and they suffered defeated due to extensive rigging and manipulation of the ballot.

Dr Sattar said that not only Muttahida, but other parties also had complained about it.

He said that free political activity in the area could convince him that ‘no go areas’ had been eliminated.

This would be Dr Sattar’s fourth stint as the party’s candidate in general elections and that, too, from the so-called ‘no go area’.

He was first elected to the National Assembly from Haq Parast platform in 1988 and again in 1990. As the party had boycotted the National Assembly elections in 1993, Dr Sattar contested on a Sindh Assembly seat. In 1997 elections, he was elected both as an MNA and MPA. In the interest of the party, he had given up the MNA seat.