MULTAN: Former president and Pakistan Peoples Party co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari remained unsuccessful in convincing former minister for religious affairs Hamid Saeed Kazmi not to contest election from NA-175 in Rahim Yar Khan.

Mr Zardari who arrived here on Friday on a short visit held a meeting with the former minister at his residence.

Later talking to reporters, Mr Kazmi said the former president had offered support of his party if he contested election from NA-176 in Rahim Yar Khan instead of NA-175. But, he said, he had refused the offer and informed Mr Zardari that he would contest election from NA-175 as an independent candidate.

“PPP south Punjab president Ahmed Mehmood wants to give the party ticket for NA-175 to former MNA Khawaja Ghulam Rasool Koreja and Zardari Sahib has asked me to contest election on NA-176 instead of NA-175. But I have informed him that I cannot leave my constituency NA-175 from where I was elected in 2008.”

He said the former president had offered him the party’s support even if he would contest election on NA-176 as an independent candidate. He said Mr Zardari did not express his displeasure over his decision and he was thankful to him.

Mr Kazmi said the way in which the party’s tickets were being distributed was not appropriate.

Mr Koreja was elected from NA-175 in 2013 on a PPP ticket by obtaining 80,499 votes. Mr Kazmi did not contest the 2013 elections as he was imprisoned at that time in a Haj corruption case. Mr Kazmi and other officials of the religious ministry were accused of hiring a substandard building on an exorbitant rent for housing Pakistani pilgrims in Makkah and receiving kickbacks in the process.

In the 2008 elections, Mr Kazmi won the seat by acquiring 65,395 votes. He was released in March 2017 by spending almost two years in jail over charges of irregularities in the 2009 Haj operation.

PPP’s senior vice president in south Punjab Khawaja Rizwan Alam said that as per party policy, which almost prevails in all political parties, the PPP was going to award its ticket to last time winning candidate, Khawaja Ghulam Rasool Koreja.

Meanwhile, former prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani submitted his nomination papers for NA-158, his sons Abdul Qadir Gilani for NA-154, Ali Musa Gilani for NA-157 and Ali Haidar Gilani for PP-211 and Syed Nazim Hussain Shah for PP-212. All the candidates will contest elections on PPP tickets.

Published in Dawn, June 9th, 2018