QUETTA, Oct 4: The Awami National Party (ANP) and Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) have announced that they will back the joint candidates of nationalist parties plus the PPP for nazims of Quetta city and two towns.

Speaking at different press conferences on Tuesday at the Arbab House and the candidates’ office the vice-president of ANP, Arbab Zahir Kasi, and Ayaz Swati, advocate general secretary of the PML-N, said that their candidates for nazims of city and Zarghoon and Chiltan towns had withdrawn from the contest.

Arbab Zahir further said that party nominee Zahir Domar for city nazim and Jaffar Khan Kasi candidate for Zarghoon town had withdrawn in favour of Dr Kaleemullah Khan and Rozi Khan respectively.

He claimed that nominees of the four-party alliance were being provided support to defeat ruling party candidates in the local government polls scheduled for Oct 6.

Ayaz Swati of the PML-N said that the party’s candidates for city nazim Sadal Khan Nasar and Naseemur Rehman for Zarghoon town had withdrawn in favour of candidates fielded jointly by the PMAP, BNP-M, NP and PPP in order to bring candidates that would strive for the unity of citizens in the city.

Dr Hayee Baloch, chief of the National Party, Habib Jalib Baloch, secretary general of BNP-Mengal, Shafique Ahmed Khan, MPA of the PPP, and Usman Kakar of the PMAP were also present on the occasion.