MANSEHRA: A disgruntled group of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf on Friday announced that it would field former district president of the party Dr Ashfaq Tanoli for the tehsil mayor election against the party’s nominee, Kamal Saleem Swati.

The announcement came during a meeting attended by workers of the group.

Spokesman for the PTI Hazara division governing body Ajmal Khan Swati, who was also in attendance in the meeting, declared withdrawal from the mayor election in support of Dr Tanoli.

“Railway minister Azam Swati told us a lie that election tickets would be awarded to workers only, as family members of lawmakers were nominated for election in all five tehsils of Mansehra district,” Dr Tanoli told reporters after the meeting.

Insists leadership’s promise to award poll tickets to workers false

He said the PTI suffered a massive defeat in the first phase of local body elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and would see the same in the second phase, too, as no worker got poll ticket.

The angry group’s leader claimed that the PTI workers were against Kamal Saleem Swati’s nomination.

Ajmal Swati said the group fielded own candidate for Mansehra tehsil mayor election.

“The decisions made in drawing rooms are never accepted by workers,” he said.

The angry group’s leader said railway minister Azam Khan Swati approached him and promised the award of the party’s election tickets for mayor slots ‘on merit’, but the promise turned out to be false.

RESCUE 1122: The Rescue 1122 emergency service is all set to launch its activities in four tehsil headquarters of Mansehra district.

Special assistant of the chief minister on population Ahmad Hussain Shah told reporters that Rescue 1122 would soon launch its operations in Balakot, Oghi, Darband and Baffa tehsils.

“Chief Minster Mahmood Khan has formally approved the appointment of staff and other formalities for the Rescue 1122,” he said.

Mr Shah said that another station of the emergency service would be established in Kaghan area for the speedy yet effective services to the residents and tourists.

“The government wants to address the core issues faced by the people and the approval of more Rescue 1122 stations here confirms it,” he said.

Published in Dawn, February 26th, 2022