HARIPUR, Dec 1: The PPP candidate for NA-19 Haripur, Sardar Abdul Rauf Khan, withdrew his nomination papers and surrendered the party ticket here on Saturday. Sardar Rauf, a former president of the District Bar Association, had contested the election in 2002 as a PPP candidate and bagged over 30,000 votes.

Through a letter addressed to PPP chairperson Benazir Bhutto, Sardar Rauf said that he along with his lawyer fraternity had been struggling since March 2007 for the cause of the democratic order, rule of law, supremacy of judiciary and the Constitution and transparent polls. But prevailing circumstances required him to remain in the fold of his lawyer community and render sacrifices for all these objectives, he said.

“Since I am unable to strike a balance between the larger cause and the shallow aim of sitting in parliament so I may not be able to contest the elections,” he said, adding that taking part in the polls might tarnish the popularity of the PPP.

Sardar Rauf later withdrew his papers at the office of the returning officer NA-19, Additional District Judge Adil Khan.—Correspondent