LAKKI MARWAT: Local elders have rejected the delimitation of the provincial assembly constituencies in Bannu district and warned that they would move superior courts against the move by the Election Commission of Pakistan.

Malik Mohammad Ishaq Khan and Umar Khittab Khan told reporters here on Thursday that the ECP had divided six village councils of Mandan area into three provincial constituencies without the consent of voters.

They said former MPAs Qari Abdul Razzaq Mujaddedi, Malik Naqeebullah Khan and Malik Riaz Khan belonged to Mandan but after fresh delimitation, the residents won’t be able to elect someone from among them as the lawmaker.

The elders said the ECP move was meant to benefit ‘certain political elements’ but the residents would put up a strong resistance to ‘this act of injustice’.

They urged local MPA Malik Pakhtoonyar Khan to support the people of Mandan on the delimitation issue.

Meanwhile, former tehsil nazim and JUI-F leader Malik Ihsan Khan told a presser that all political and legal options would be used for the restoration of old constituencies.

He said many parts of six village councils in Mandan were part of PK-100 constituency but they had been shifted to PK-99 and PK-101 constituencies by the ECP causing reservations among the residents.

The former nazim also complained about the division of three patwar circles into three provincial assembly constituencies. “The ECP has carried out fresh delimitation by ignoring ground realities and the will of residents and therefore, it is unacceptable to us all,” he said.

POWER BREAKDOWN: The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf leaders on Thursday demanded a probe by the Peshawar Electric Supply Company into a daylong power breakdown in Lakki city for action against those responsible for it.

Dr Mohammad Iqbal, Ahmad Nawaz and other PTI leaders told reporters here that power supply to Lorry Adda, Haqdadabad, Hamidabad, Omarabad Garaban, Hospital Road and Minakhel was suspended at 2pm on Muharram 10 but it had yet to be restored.

He said the prolonged power cut also caused water shortage to the misery of the people, who had to purchase water for domestic use.

The PTI leaders asked the Pesco to immediately restore electric supply, find the cause of power breakdown through an inquiry, and take steps to improve power system.

Published in Dawn, August 12th, 2022