HARIPUR: The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf invited applications for the slots of future district and tehsil nazims from the intending candidates by June 20, a central leader of the party told Dawn here on Monday.

PTI leader Shah Mahmood Qureshi has been entrusted with the task of receiving applications, sorting them out and finalising the consensus and suitable candidates for the posts.

The intra-party groups have started lobbying for their kith and kin in their respective district and tehsils.

In Haripur, PTI is going to set a new precedence of dictatorship, say political analysts.

Shah Mahmood Qureshi tasked with finalising suitable candidates

Haripur thesil has 37 union councils, while Ghazi tehsil has eight union councils, but PTI central leadership is bent upon to award ticket to a new face from Ghazi, they add.

Ail Salam, who had won his district council seat unopposed, is a cousin of PTI MPA Faisal Zaman. He has landed in the city during the run-up of elections in his native town.

The majority rules in democracy, but in Haripur minority is set to rule. PTI, which has offered a third alternative to people against PPP and PML-N, two houses of lords, is going to make a mockery of democracy.

Has Mr Salam rendered more sacrifices than the PTI councillors-elect or he possesses extraordinary qualities than the elected councillors, who contested on the party ticket? Why he has become inevitable for the majority to elect him? PTI should not undermine the tenets of democracy.

Earlier, Sardar Haroon, a district councillor-elect from Kot Najibullah union council, has shown his aspirations for the key office in the district. A group of more than 15 councillors-elect tried to amass support for him. They contacted some of their colleagues, but their own government is opposed to any candidate from Haripur.

They think that the government servitude is the only proof of loyalty, but it is a fake democracy the PTI is working for.

The governments are not supposed to rule, instead to serve their people. But, in this case the provincial government is there to command the elected representative of the people.

For tehsil nazim post, Eng Nasir Iqbal has emerged as a promising candidate. He is an old PTI worker, but a group of nouveaux riches is running against him.

The spoilers, whose permanent party is power, have been influencing the post-election situation.

They are with PTI, because they know that Imran Khan’s popularity graph has yet not blurred. But, they are opposed to Eng Nasir Iqbal, who is not a factotum of any power-hungry politician.

The registration of criminal cases at large scale against the political opponents, who had occasionally staged protests on roads against the poll rigging, has also marred the sanctity, if any, of the PTI.

The imposition of Section 144 for longest days has recalled the era of dictators.

Published in Dawn, June 16th, 2015

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