KARACHI, Sept 22: The returning officers (RO) on Thursday allotted election symbols to all candidates left in the field for the third phase of local government elections 2003.

Polling for the third phase elections will be held on Oct 6 to elect the city district/district/ town nazims, and candidates against seats reserved for women, peasants/workers and minorities in the city/district/town councils.

For the top slot of the city district nazim on Wednesday, four candidates withdrew from the race, leaving six candidates in the run.

Those who withdrew included Babar Ghauri, Syed Waseem Akhtar, M.A. Jalil, fielded by the Haq Parast panel, and Muslim Pervez of the Al-Khidmat panel.

The six candidates vying for the city nazim slot were allotted the following symbols: Dr Muhammad Hanif — Chair, Ms Fauzia Wahab — Motor Car, Niamatullah Khan — Candle, Rizwan Ikram Khanzada — Date Palm Tree, Syed Mustafa Kamal — Charpai and Syed Zahid Ali — Horse.

Despite six candidates in the field, observers say that the main contest will be between Syed Mustafa Kamal of Haq Parast panel and Niamatullah Khan of the Al-Khidmat panel.

To substantiate their observation, they told Dawn that the negotiation team of Al-Khidmat panel, led by Dr Mairajul Huda Siddiqui, was busy in holding talks on Thursday night with leaders of the Awam Dost panel and the Watan Nawaz panel.

The Jamaat-i-Islami circles expressed hope that by Friday, after adjustment, consensus would be reached between the Al-Khidmat and other panels of the opposition parties.

In case an understanding is reached, Ms Fauzia Wahab and Syed Zahid Ali, fielded by the Awam Dost panel of the PPP and Watan Nawaz Panel of the PML-N, would have to announce their retirement from the contest.

Meanwhile, the election commission on Thursday provided the list of candidates with election symbols to the government printing press for printing ballot papers.

Each voter of the electoral college, comprising 2,314 members from 178 union councils in the city district, will be given eight ballots for election of the city nazim, town nazim, and council members on reserved seats of women, peasants/workers and minorities.

In towns, the candidates who were in the field for town nazims reportedly got the following symbols.

NORTH NAZIMABAD TOWN: Mumtaz Hameed — Eagle, Qazi Aamir — Boat; New Karachi Town: Muhammad Hanif — Cup and Saucer, Saeed Ahmad Siddiqui — Eagle; Gulberg Town: Liaquat Ali Khan — Brick, Syed Mauood Ahmad Hayat — Eagle; Liaquatabad Town: Basharat Ali — Boat, Osama Quaderi — Cup and Saucer; Saddar Town: Abdul Habib Memon — Boat, Muhammad Ejaz Alam — Eagle, Muhammad Dilawar — Cup and Saucer, Nasir Rizwan — Brick, Syed Muhammad Yaqub Sabzwari — Hukka; and Lyari Town: Abdul Nasir Baloch — Cup and Saucer, Abdul Rashid — Eagle, Abdul Razzaq — Boat, Malik Muhammad Khan — Peacock, and Dhani Baksh Otho — Turban.