ISLAMABAD: As many as 144 candidates are left in the field for elections to 52 Senate seats, scheduled for March 5, after papers of 38 were rejected by the returning officers during scrutiny.

According to the data released by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), the majority of those whose nomination papers were rejected were independent candidates, including 23 from the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata).

Also read: 184 candidates submit nomination papers for Senate elections: ECP

In all, 43 nomination papers had been filed for four seats in Fata, of which 23 were rejected. Those excluded from the electoral race – unless cleared in appeal by the Election Commission – include former Fata parliamentary leader in the National Assembly Munir Khan Orakzai, incumbent Senator Mohammad Idrees Khan, former MNA Akhunzada Chittan and former Senator Hafiz Rasheed Ahmad.

In Punjab, a total of 15 nomination papers had been filed against seven general seats, five of which were rejected. The papers of PML-N’s Saud Majeed, whose name was among the contenders for the slot of Punjab governor, were also rejected.

According to a report submitted by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), Mr Majeed was a tax defaulter to the tune of Rs9.5 million. All four independent candidates from the province are also out of the race now.

Objections had also been raised against eligibility of PML-N president Raja Mohammad Zafarul Haq, Information Minister Pervaiz Rasheed and retired General Abdul Qayyum, but were rejected by the returning officer who approved their nomination papers.

Most of the 38 rejected candidates were independents

Likewise, all four nomination papers for the lone general seat in Islamabad and five papers for one reserved seat for women were also cleared.

In Balochistan, three of the nomination papers filed for seven general seats were rejected. These included JUI-F spokesman Jan Mohammad Achakzai. According to Mr Achakzai, his seconder could not appear before the returning officer at the time of scrutiny for security reasons. He said he would change the seconder during the appeal process. Two others whose papers were rejected included Faiq Ali Jamali and Hussain Islam.

The rest of the data released by the commission for Balochistan is quite confusing. At one place, it shows Kulsoom Parveen – a sitting BNP-A senator who has managed to get a PML-N ticket for the upcoming elections for a reserved seat for women – as a validly nominated candidate, while on another page, she is said to be one of six candidates who are out of the race.

All the nine papers filed for two seats reserved for technocrats and ulema from Balochistan were approved. Two out of total eight nominations filed for one seat for non-Muslims were rejected. Miss Kanwal Wilson and A. Aziz are the two to have been thrown out of the electoral race.

In Khyber Pakhtun-khwa, only two nomination papers, one filed for a general seat and one for a reserved seats for technocrats and non-Muslims, were rejected while all the seven papers filed against two seats reserved for women were approved. The rejected candidates include Daud Barki (general), Adnan Khan (technocrat) and Ravi Kumar (non-Muslim).

Published in Dawn February 21th , 2015

On a mobile phone? Get the Dawn Mobile App: Apple Store | Google Play