LAHORE: Jamaatud Dawa (JuD) emir Hafiz Muhammad Saeed’s son and a son-in-law are among 53 nominees the Milli Muslim League (MML) has fielded for National Assembly seats in Punjab.

Hafiz Talha Saeed, son of the JuD chief, is contesting for NA-91 (Sargodha-IV), while son-in-law Hafiz Waleed Iqbal is a candidate for NA-133 (Lahore-XI), MML spokesperson Tabish Qayyum says.

He said that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) accepted papers of the two candidates along with 51 others.

The ECP has yet to register the MML as a political party. Hence their candidates will be using the platform of little know Allah-o-Akbar Tehreek, led by Dr Mian Ehsan Bari, with the election symbol of ‘chair’.

Talha Saeed is a lecturer at a Lahore university and is head of the JuD’s teachers’ wing. He has, however, chosen his father’s hometown for the electoral debut. Hafiz Saeed belongs to Chak 126-Janoobi (south) of Sargodha.

Of the 53 MML nominees, five each are in the fray from Lahore and Sialkot, seven from Faisalabad, three each from Gujranwala, Sargodha and Kasur, two each from Mandi Bahauddin, Multan, Sheikhupura, Vehari, Rahim Yar Khan, and Dera Ghazi Khan districts. One each candidate is from Attock, Rawalpindi, Chakwal, Jhelum, Gujrat, Narowal, Hafizabad, Chiniot, Nankana Sahib, Toba Tek Singh, Pakpattan, Sahiwal, Khanewal, and Lodhran districts.

The MML has also fielded its candidate for NA-53 constituency of Islamabad, while at least 125 of its nominees will be in the run for Punjab Assembly seats from various districts.

As per list of the MML, it has put up 16 aspirants from Chiniot, 11 from Sialkot, 10 from Lahore, nine from Gujranwala, seven from Sargodha, six each from Kasur and Rawalpindi, five from Sheikhupura, four each from Gujrat, Toba Tek Singh, Rahim Yar Khan, Okara, and Multan, three each from Jhang, Mandi Bahauddin, Narowal and Bahawalnagar and two each from Chakwal, Hafizabad, Khushab, Nankana Sahib, Sahiwal, Vehari, Bahawalpur and Dera Ghazi Khan. There will be one each candidate in Attock, Jhelum, Pakpattan, Khanewal and Muzaffargarh one each candidate is in the contest.

Published in Dawn, June 23rd, 2018