MANSEHRA: Central leader of the opposition Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz retired Captain Mohammad Safdar has said if PTI MPA Babar Saleem Swati from Mansehra is made a provincial minister, his party will not contest election for the tehsil council’s chairmanship.

“If Chief Minister Mahmood Khan shows respect to my native area Mansehra, we [PML-N] will respond to the gesture by not fielding our candidate against the ruling PTI in the tehsil council chairman’s election,” Safdar told reporters in Oghi area here on Saturday.

Mr Safdar also named Mohammad Liaquat as the PML-N contender for the council chairman of Darband tehsil in Mansehra district.

Addressing the PTI Workers Convention the other day, the chief minister had announced that if the PTI won the Mansehra tehsil council election, he would make local MPA Babar Swati a minister.

Safdar flays govt over growing inflation, joblessness

The PML-N leader said his party would soon announce its nominees for tehsil council chairmanship elections in the province, including Hazara division, after internal consultation.

He said Hazara division was a stronghold of the PML-N, which would sweep the upcoming local body elections there.

Mr Safdar criticised the PTI government over the growing inflation and unemployment rates and complained that the people were struggling to make ends meet.

HELD: The police arrested a man for illegally occupying a piece of land in Lohar Band area here on Saturday.

District police officer Sajjad Khan told reporters that Abdul Hameed had occupied the land of Mohammad Asif and issued death threats to him.

He said the police also handed over the possession of the land to its owner.

The DPO said dozens of land grabbers had already been arrested and the crackdown on such people would continue.

Meanwhile, a court handed down life imprisonment to a man here on Saturday for desecrating the holy Quran two years ago.

The trial was held inside the district jail.

Published in Dawn, January 9th, 2022