SWABI: Pakistan Muslim League-N and Qaumi Watan Party have entered into an electoral alliance for the upcoming local bodies polls at the district level.

The decision was made at a meeting attended by the activists of PML-N and JUI from all the four tehsils of Swabi. PML-N district president Iftikhar Ahmad Khan and QWP district chairman Masood Jabar were also in attendance.

One of the participants told this correspondent after the meet that it was the political rivalry with the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf that forced the PML-N and QWP to form an alliance for the LG elections.

Another participant said that as ANP, JUI-F and PPP had already reached an agreement to contest the LG polls against the alliance of PTI, AJIP and JI, PML-N and QWP were left with only option of getting together for the upcoming polls.

Mr Iftikhar Khan and Mr Jabar told the media that the two parties would field joint candidates and also have seat-to-seat adjustment where necessary.

They demanded that the elections be held under the supervision of judiciary and that the results be declared immediately after completion of the polling process to avoid rigging allegations from the contesting parties.

The PML-N and QWP also constituted a committee tasked with fielding joint candidates in the coming polls. “Our doors are open for taking along other like-minded groups at the district level,” said Mr Jabar.

Mr Iftikhar claimed that the alliance would win the coming local government elections.

Meanwhile, JUI-F, ANP and PPP, which have also formed an alliance for the LG elections at the provincial level, held a meeting on Tuesday, vowing to give an ignominious defeat to PTI-led coalition partners in the local bodies’ elections.

The meeting held at the JUI district office was chaired by ANP district president Haji Rehmanullah. JUI district chief Attaul Haq Darvaish and PPP district president Javid Inqilabi also attended the gathering.

After the meeting, the political parties’ leaders told the media that they would field electables in the coming elections. They asked the workers to run a joint door-to-door election campaign in this regard.

Published in Dawn, April 8th, 2015

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