PESHAWAR: A total of 155 candidates withdrew their nomination papers for the July 25 general elections leaving 210 in the field for the five national and 14 provincial assembly seats of Peshawar.

Friday was the last date to withdraw nomination papers.

Twenty-six candidates withdrew their papers in Peshawar’s five National Assembly constituencies and 129 in 14 provincial assembly constituencies.

Returning officers to allot election symbols today

Now, 42 candidates are in the running for five NA seats and 168 for 14 PA seats.

The respective returning officers released the lists of the candidates, who withdrew their papers.

Most of them belonged to the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf. They didn’t get party tickets.

The returning officers will allot symbols to the candidates today (June 30).

In the NA constituencies, three candidates withdrew papers in NA-27 Peshawar I and NA-28 Peshawar II each, eight in NA-29 Peshawar III, seven in NA-30 Peshawar IV and five in NA-31 Peshawar V.

There are 10 candidates in NA-27, six in NA-28, five in NA-29, eight in NA-30 and 13 in NA-31.

In one of the KP Assembly constituencies, PK-73 Peshawar VIII, 14 candidates have withdrawn their papers. Of them, 10 belong to the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf.

The constituency consists of several urban localities, including Hayatabad Township, which is considered a stronghold of the PTI, and therefore, aspirants had applied for party ticket in large numbers.

The party awarded ticket to Taimoor Saleem Khan Jhagra over which several candidates had objected but finally withdrawn their papers in his favour.

A total of 15 candidates are in the running in this constituency.

Similarly, 16 candidates withdrew papers in PK-77 Peshawar XII. Six of them belonged to the PTI.

Noor Jehan, who claims to be the cousin of Bollywood star Shahrukh Khan, also withdrew her papers from this constituency as an independent candidate in favour of the ANP’s.

Former provincial minister Shaukat Yousafzai withdrew his papers in the constituency for being awarded ticket by the PTI in Shangla district.

Moreover, 11 candidates withdrew their papers in PK-78 Peshawar XIII. Of them, six are from the PTI, two each from the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal and Pakistan Peoples Party-Parliamentarian, and one from the ANP.

Now, 16 candidates are contesting elections in PK-75, PK-76 and PK-78 each, 15 in PK-73 and PK-77 each, 14 in PK-79, 13 in PK67 and PK-72 each, 10 in PK-69 and PK-71 each, nine in PK- 70, eight in PK-66 and PK-68 each and six in PK-74.

Prominent among the candidates for NA- 27 are former MNAs Noor Alam Khan of the PTI and Asma Alamgir of the PPP and former senator Haji Ghulam Ali of the JUI-F.

Noor Alam was elected in 2008 on the PPP ticket but later joined the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf.

Apart from Asma Alamgir, two women Sidra Qadeem and former MPA Sobia Shahid have also been contesting elections for the seat.

Prominent candidates on NA-28, Peshawar II include former MNAs Sabir Awan of MMA and Arbab Aamir Ayub of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf. The PML-N has awarded ticket to Intikhab Khan Chamkani and the ANP to the Shafi Akbar for the seat.

Farhan Jhagra, son of KP Governor Iqbal Zafar Jhagra, has withdrawn his papers in the constituency.

NA-29 candidates include PML-N provincial president Amir Muqam, Nasir Khan Musazai of the PTI, Arbab Kamal Ahmad of the ANP and Mohammad Shafiq of Tehreek-i-Labaik Pakistan, while NA-30’s contenders are former federal minister of PPP Arbab Alamgir, Sher Ali Arbab of the PTI, Alamgir Khalil of the ANP and Arbab Najeeb of the MMA.

In NA-31 Peshawar V, former MNA Haji Ghulam Ahmad Bilour of the ANP, Haji Shaukat Ali of the PTI, Akhundzada Irfanullah Shah of the PPP and Siddique Paracha of the MMA are in the running.

In the provincial assembly constituencies, former provincial minister and head of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf Peshawar region Shah Farman has been contesting elections in PK-70 and PK-71 constituencies.

Published in Dawn, June 30th, 2018