April 17, 2008	Thursday	Rabi-us-Sani 10, 1429

MUZAFFARGARH, April 16: PML-Q has almost failed to find any candidate for PP-258 where by-election will be held on June 3 while three people are trying to get PPP ticket.

The seat has been vacated by Qayyum Jatoi who won NA-180 and PP-258 on Feb 18 vote. He had defeated PML-Q’s Haroon Bukhari with a margin of 500 votes. Now Mr Bukhari is trying to get PML-N ticket otherwise he will contest independently.

Jatoi is also facing difficulties in awarding ticket because in the election he had promised to so many people that he would award ticket to them after securing PP-258. Sher Sultan city nazim Abid Ali Bukhari has resigned from the slot and he has also been associated with PPP since long. Qaim Ali Shamsi, former PML-Q MPA, is also hopeful of getting PPP ticket because in Feb 18 election he had supported Qayyum Jatoi while a relative of Qayyum, Zia Jatoi, is also in the race.

When ex-chief minister Pervaiz Elahi had visited Alipur in November 2007, his hosts Bukhari and Gopang brothers offered him to contest election 2008 from here. But Pervaiz Elahi had thanked them and announced Sui gas, a college and cadet school for Alipur, but no scheme was executed in this district. In Feb 18 election, PPP swept all five NA and six PP seats.

Now there are five candidates for PP-258, but former MNA Atta Qureshi claims that Mian Shahbaz Sharif will oblige him because he is an old N-leader.