MULTAN, Sept 22: PPP stalwart Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi has said the opposition’s candidates for the third phase of the local polls are being denied access to the electorate. Speaking at a press conference here on Thursday, the MNA alleged that the voters for the third and the most crucial phase of the LG polls were being whisked away in the name of picnicking to far-off areas under the supervision of the district bureaucracy to detach them from the candidates other than those nominated by the chief minister.

He said although the prime minister had assured the opposition leadership of fair play, all kinds of negative tactics were being employed to secure victory for the PML-backed candidates.

Citing example of the Shah Rukn-i-Alam town committee where his brother Makhdoomzada Mureed Husain Qureshi is vying for the top slot, the PPP central deputy secretary-general said rumours were in rife that the CM’s candidate Rai Arif Mansab in aide with the local bureaucracy was flocking the electorate in Murree to keep them away from the his opponents till the election day.

He said in his view Multan DIG Malik Iqbal, DPO Muneer Chishti and DCO Iftikhar Babar were the men of integrity, but Rai Mansab had been telling the electorate that all the aforementioned officials had directed their subordinates to ensure his victory by hook or by crook.

He urged the Election Commission of Pakistan, the district returning officer and the local administration not to allow any one to ‘confine’ the voters and ensure everyone to have access to the electorate.

“How can one convey his or her manifesto to the electorate when they are confined at some undisclosed locations two weeks prior to the elections?” he questioned.

He said the opposition would, however, adopt all legal and political methods to struggle against the Punjab government’s design to sideline the opponents through police, administration and official resources.