February 19, 2008	Tuesday	Safar 11, 1429

VEHARI, Feb 18: Voters of Sardarpur Jhandir village in Mailsi tehsil set a unique example of unity, submission and indifference among their folds after they decided not to support any political party or candidate, and only 27 out of a total of around 1,300 voters cast their votes at their polling station on Monday.

Though it was not a pre-planned exercise, these 27 people also kept a precise equilibrium while casting votes among the three mainstream political parties, the PPP, the PML-N and the PML-Q, as their candidates bagged nine votes each.

Polling station No 230 in NA-170 and PP-239 was meant to cater to 1,300 voters, but the local elders belonging to Jhandir family influenced the people not to vote to any political party or personality. Almost whole the population of the village surrendered to their feudal lords’ will and kept themselves away from the polling station on the polling day.

Though the 27 voters polled their votes randomly, the outcome was quite interesting as they polled nine votes (five of men and four of women) each in favour of PPP’s candidate for NA-170 Mahmood Hayat Toochi Khan, Aurangzeb Khichi of the PML-Q and Sardar Noor Ahmad Malazai of the PML-N.

On the same pattern, Sardar Muhammad Khichi, a PPP candidate for PP-239, Mian Majid Nawaz Arain of the PML-Q and Dr Nasim Khichi of the PML-N bagged nine votes each.

After these 27 people had polled their votes, the villagers left the polling station and so did the polling agents of the candidates. The polling staff, however, kept waiting for any other voter till the polling deadline, but nobody turned up subsequently.

Monday’s unity of the villagers mirrored their identical practice they had adopted in the 1988 general election when Jhandirs had directed them to cast equal votes in favour of Mumtaz Bhabha of the PPP and Dilawar Khichi of the Islami Jamhoori Ittehad.

The Jhandirs wanted keeping themselves distant from all political parties or personalities so they decided not to favour any one of them, otherwise they don’t have any substantial grievances requiring immediate redress.