QUETTA: Ruling coalition partners in the Balochistan government agreed to elect Dr Kaleemullah Khan as Quetta mayor on Tuesday.

Dr Kaleemullah, a former provincial minister, belongs to Pashtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP).

After thorough consultations, ruling PkMAP, Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) and National Party (NP) decided to field a unanimous candidate for the seat of city mayor.

Final round of local bodies elections is scheduled to be held in Quetta and other districts of Balochistan on January 28 (tomorrow).

The seat of deputy mayor in Quetta would be given to PML-N’s Younus Lehri as per the agreement struck among the coalition partners.

Addressing a joint press conference, PkMAP provincial president Usman Kakar and secretary general of PML-N Balochistan, Naseebullah Bazai, claimed that the alliance has a clear majority to elect mayor and deputy mayor. “We formed an alliance in the interest of the citizens of Quetta,” Bazai said.

Read: Balochistan government in deadlock over Quetta mayor

The All Parties Democratic Alliance (APDA) has nominated Qazi Abdul Qahir Achakzai as their candidate for mayor and Raza Wakeel for deputy mayor.

Achakzai belongs to the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (Ideological) and Raza Wakeel belongs to the Hazara Democratic Party (HDP).

A total of 10,600 councilors would elect 725 mayors, deputy mayors, chairmen and vice chairmen across the province during final phase of the elections.

The Election Commission has declared four districts Zhob, Quetta, Killa Abdullah and Killa Saifullah as sensitive for security reasons.

Balochistan Election Commissioner Syed Sultan Bayazeed said foolproof security arrangements were made for holding peaceful elections in the province. “We have deputed 139 presiding officers across the province,” he said.

The elections were held on December 7, 2013, in the the province and its final phase was had been delayed owing to a pending case in the Supreme Court.