Ruling PTI gets nazim slots in nine districts of KP

Published August 31, 2015
PTI workers greet Arbab Mohammad Asim Khan on his election as Peshawar district nazim. —Photo by Shahbaz Butt
PTI workers greet Arbab Mohammad Asim Khan on his election as Peshawar district nazim. —Photo by Shahbaz Butt

PESHAWAR: The candidates of ruling PTI were elected nazims in nine districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, followed by four district nazims of its coalition partner Jamaat-i-Islami, as the process of local government elections completed on Sunday in the province.

PML-N secured three slots of nazims, whereas PPP, ANP and JUI-F got two posts of district nazims each in the province. PTI had absolute majority only in few districts where it did not require support of any other party, however, in most of the districts political parties had formed alliances with each other.

The candidates of PTI were elected district nazims in Peshawar, Charsadda, Nowshera, Dera Ismail Khan, Tank, Karak, Haripur, Battagram and Torghar.

The ruling party faced setback in Abbottabad where its dissident group emerged victorious against the party candidate with the support of PML-N.


JI grabs four nazim seats, followed by PML-N with three, while PPP, ANP and JUI-F get two seats each


JI managed to secure berth of district nazim in Upper Dir, Lower Dir, Buner and Chitral. PML-N won the post of district nazim in Mansehra, Swat and Shangla. ANP emerged victorious in Swabi and Mardan whereas district nazim of PPP were elected in Malakand and Lakki Marwat. JUI-F won posts of district nazims in Hangu and Kohat.

In Peshawar, PTI candidates Mohammad Asim Khan and Syed Qasim Ali Shah were elected district nazim and as naib nazim respectively.

The tripartite alliance of ANP, PPP and JUI-F boycotted the election process for having some reservations at the schedule of the election.

With the election of nazim and nazib nazims of district, tehsil/town, village and neighbourhood councils, the process of the three-tier local government system took five months to complete. In the new local government system, over 40,000 people were elected for different tiers mostly to the village and neighbourhood councils.

PTI also won the slots of nazim and naib-nazim of three towns in Peshawar while PML-N candidate was elected nazim of Town-IV and JUI-F candidate got the slot of naib-nazim. The party-based elections were conducted through opened division.

Three candidates including Mohammad Asim Khan and Younas Zahir of PTI and Raham Dil Nawaz of PML-N were in the run for Peshawar district nazim. However, prior to commencing of the polling at District Council Hall, Younas Zahir and Raham Dil Nazaz withdrew from the contest. Three other candidates for the slot of naib-nazim also withdrew in favour of Qasim Ali Shah.

However, Osama Ahmed Waraich, the returning officer, insisted to continue the polling because under the rules it was mandatory for the winning candidate to get at least 70 votes.

The Peshawar district council consists of 138 members including 86 of PTI, 14 of ANP, 12 of PML-N, eight each of JUI-F and PPP, seven of JI and three are independent. Out of them, 107 members were present in the hall during the polling and 98 of them voted for Mohammad Asim Khan and Qasim Ali Shah while 11 abstained from voting.

Announcing the results, the returning officer first administered oath to Naib-Nazim Qasim Ali Shah and then to Nazim Mohammad Asim Khan.

In his brief speech, the newly elected district Nazim said that all efforts would be made for the development of Peshawar. He said that the protesting members of the opposition would be persuaded to come to the house.

In Haripur, PTI nominees Adil Salam and Agha Shabbir Ahmed won the slots of district nazim and naib nazim respectively. Each one bagged 53 out of 69 votes. PML-N candidates Javed Khan and Dad Mohammad bagged only 15 votes each. 

Similarly, PTI candidates Tariq Mehmood Khan and Syed Ahsan Shah won tehsil nazim slot by getting 43 votes out of the total 56 votes while two voters didn’t turn up. PML-N candidates Sajjad Khan Jadoon and Raja Ayaz each polled eleven votes. 

Aslam Hayat Khan and Haji Anwer, both PTI nominees for Ghazi tehsil, have been elected unopposed.

In Swat, the six-party alliance of PML-N, ANP, JUI-F, JI, QWP and PPP grabbed majority of votes in the elections for nazim and naib nazim slots.

Mohammad Ali Shah, the candidate of the alliance, was elected district nazim while Abdul Jabbar Shah was elected naib nazim. Both of them grabbed 62 out of 101 votes.

PTI candidate for nazim slot Ali Khan and Mohammadzeb Khan, its nominee for naib nazim slot, secured 37 votes each.

The six-party alliance formed its governments in five tehsils while PTI candidates won in two tehsils.

In Swabi, ANP candidate Ameer Rehman and JUI-F candidate Asar Khan were elected district nazim and naib nazim respectively. Both of them got 57 votes while their rival Azizullah Khan and Asif Iqbal of PTI received only 27 votes.

The PTI candidates won nazim slots in Chota Lahor and Topi thesils while ANP candidate won nazim and JUI-F naib nazim seats in Razar tesil and JI candidate won nazim and ANP nominee got naib nazim slot in Swabi tehsil.

In Nowshera, PTI candidates Liaquat Khattak, the brother of Chief Minister Pervez Khattak, and Ashfaq Khan won elections for district nazim and naib naiz slots repectively.

PTI also got nazim and naib nazim slots in Nowshera, Jehangira and Pabbi tehsils.

In Abbottabad, PTI forward bloc candidate Sardar Sher Bahadar and Shaukat Tanoli got the district nazim and naib nazim slots respectively.

Sardar Sher Bahadar defeated Ali Khan Jadoon, the candidate of his own party, with the support of PML-N.

Sardar Asad Pervez of PLM-N was elected nazim and Habibullah naib nazim of Havelian tehsil by defeating PTI candidates Iftikhar Khan and Habib. In Abbottabad tehsil, PTI nominee M Ishaque was elected nazim and JI candidate Sardar Shuja naib nazim.

In Karak, PTI candidates Umer Daraz, brother of PMA Gul Sahib Khan, and retired Major Sajjad won district nazim and naib nazim slot by securing 21 votes.

JUI-F candidate Abdul Wahab and Jehanzeb won got nazim and naib nazim slots of Karak tehsil respectively. JUI-F candidates Malik Shaukat Ali and Speena Jan Won elections for nazim and naib nazim slots in Banda Daud Shah tehsil.

Re-election will be held in Takht-i-Nusarti tehsil for nazim slot on September 7 as ANP’s Sajjad Ahmad and PTI’s Ataullah both secured four votes each.

In Lower Dir, JI candidates Haji Mohammad Rasool Khan and Abdul Rashid were elected district nazim and naib nazim respectively.

JI also formed governments in five tehsils of the district including Lal Qilla Maidan, Munda, Samaar Bagh, Balambat and Timergara while PTI succeeded to form government in Adenzai tehsil with the support of JI.

In Mansehra, PML-N candidate Said Ghulam won district nazim slot by securing 45 votes against PTI’s Shafaht Ali, who got 40 votes. QWP candidate Ghulam Murtaza was elected naib nazim, who also secured 45 votes.

In Torghar, PTI candidates Noor Mohammad Khan and Shamzad Khan were elected district nazim and naib nazim by securing 14 votes each. Babar Khankhel and Obaidullah Khan of ANP got only nine votes for nazim and naib slots.

In Battagram: Attaur Rehman and Fahim Akbar Khan of PTI were elected district nazim and naib nazim after JUI-F boycotted the elections alleging pre-poll rigging by PTI.

In Buner, JI candidate Dr Obaidullah and ANP’s Yousaf Ali won district nazim and nabi nazim slots respectively by bagging 24 out of total 44 votes.

In Chitral, JI candidate Maghfirat Shah was elected district nazim while Maulana Abdul Shakoor of JUI-F naib nazim.

Both of them polled 22 votes against 15 votes of their rivals in the house of 38.

The two-party alliance of JI and JUI-F clinched nazim and naib nazim slots of Chitral and Mastuj tehsils.

In Kohat, Maulana Niaz Mohammad of JUI-F was elected district nazim and PML-N candidate Malik Taimoor naib nazim.

Shahid Mehmood of JUI-F was elected naib nazim of Kohat tehsil while Ishfaq Qureshi of PTI was elected nazim of Lachi tehsil and JI’s Nazir Gul nazib nazim of the same tehsil.

In Mardan, The alliance of ANP, PPP, JUI-F, PML-N and independent councillors won the district nazim slot. It also won nazim slot of Takhtbai tehsil while PTI, JI and JUI-F (forward bloc) succeeded to form governments in Mardan and Katlang tehsils.

Himayatullah Mayar was elected district mazim and Asad Ali Kashmiri naib nazim by getting 60 votes each out of total 112 votes.

In Charsadda, PTI candidate Fahad Riaz and JI’s Haji Musaweer Shah were elected district nazim and naib nazim respectively.

The tripartite alliance of PIT, QWP and JI also won tehsils nazim slots in Tangi and Shabqadar while tehsil nazim slot in Charsadda was clinched by ANP and naib nazim slot by JUI-F.

In Shangla, PML-N candidate Niaz Ahmed Khan, son of Amir Muqam, was elected district nazim and PPP’s Kamran Iqbal got the slot of naib nazim.

Mohammad Tahir Khan of PML-N was elected nazim Al Puri tehsil and Raja Usman Ali nazim of Poran tehsil.

In DI Khan, PTI candidate Azizullah Khan was elected district nazim. The PTI candidates also won elections for tehsil nazims in Paharpur, Kulachi and Dera nazims. Elections tehsil nazims of Draban Kalan and Prova will be held later.

In Hangu, JUI-F won elections for district nazim and naib nazim as well as tehsil nazims in Hangu and Tall.

In Lakki Marwat, PPP candidate Ishfaq Ahmad Khan Meenakhel and PTI’s Arab Khan were elected district nazim and naib nazim respectively.

Published in Dawn, August 31st, 2015

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

Opinion

Editorial

Afghan turbulence
Updated 19 Mar, 2024

Afghan turbulence

RELATIONS between the newly formed government and Afghanistan’s de facto Taliban rulers have begun on an...
In disarray
19 Mar, 2024

In disarray

IT is clear that there is some bad blood within the PTI’s ranks. Ever since the PTI lost a key battle over ...
Festering wound
19 Mar, 2024

Festering wound

PROTESTS unfolded once more in Gwadar, this time against the alleged enforced disappearances of two young men, who...
Defining extremism
Updated 18 Mar, 2024

Defining extremism

Redefining extremism may well be the first step to clamping down on advocacy for Palestine.
Climate in focus
18 Mar, 2024

Climate in focus

IN a welcome order by the Supreme Court, the new government has been tasked with providing a report on actions taken...
Growing rabies concern
18 Mar, 2024

Growing rabies concern

DOG-BITE is an old problem in Pakistan. Amid a surfeit of public health challenges, rabies now seems poised to ...