BAHAWALPUR: The PTI stands divided in Bahawalpur over the allotment of party tickets to its candidates for the upcoming Punjab Assembly election as Imran Khan has not so far allotted ticket to the party’s district president.

PTI district president Asghar Joya has been an aspirant for PP-254 (Bahawalpur) but the party kept the award of ticket to him pending while a section of the PTI workers has started demanding ticket for him.

His rival group is supporting Alamgir Gujjar, a new entrant to the party who appeared during the PDM government’s ‘action’ against the party leaders, including Imran Khan.

In the same manner, former PTI MPA Gazin Abbasi has been dropped by Imran Khan while his brother Shahzain Abbasi has been allotted the party ticket for PP-251 Ahmedpur East. The names of the PTI leaders, Sardar Aamir Yar Warren and his relative Sardar Jahanzeb Warren, have been reportedly dropped for a ticket.

However, in other constituencies, former MPAs Dr Muhammad Afzal, Ehsanul Haq (Yazman tehsil) and Makhdoom Iftikhar Gilani (Uch Sharif) have been awarded the party tickets. Both Dr Afzal and Ehsan were previously in the PML-Q and were in the Tariq Cheema camp. They are currently supporting Chaudhry Parvez Elahi. Gilani is the former PTI MPA from Uch Sharif.

ARRESTED: The police in Lodhran and Kahror Pakka claimed to have arrested 36 people, including five women, on charges of gambling and prostitution.

The Lodhran City police arrested 26 gamblers for allegedly gambling over the bullfight on a thoroughfare near the city.

According to PRO Imran Umar of Lodhran DPO, Lodhran City SHO Nazakat Maitla along with his team raided Chak 99-M and took into custody 26 people involved in gambling on a bull fight.

A sum of over Rs46,000, mobile phones and other accessories were seized from them and cases were registered against the suspects.

The gamblers were lodged in the city police lock-up.

Meanwhile, Kahror Pakka police got a tip-off about an outlaw Abdul Rahim Abbasi hiding in a house. A raid, led by the DSP, was conducted and a prostitution den was found in it where eight persons, including four women, were arrested.

However, the police did not find the outlaw.

SUICIDE: A man allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself from a ceiling fan of his house in Basti Gharibabad near Chota Bindra on the Multan Road in Bahawalpur.

According to Saddar police, Imtiaz (38) was alone at home while his wife had gone to work. In his wife’s absence, Imtiaz committed suicide.

The police claimed that the deceased was under financial strain.

His body was taken into custody for a post-mortem.

In a separate incident, one Sajjad Ahmed (70) suffered burns when his clothes caught fire as he was lighting a cigarette in Machli Bazaar.

He was shifted to the emergency ward of the Bahawal Victoria Hospital (BVH) where his condition was stated to be serious.

FIRE: Four animals, including two cows and as many goats, were burnt alive when their cattle pen caught fire due to a short circuit at Chak 14-M near Dunyapur.

The rescuers claimed to have extinguished the fire and rescued 14 animals from the pen.

A heap of thousands maunds of wheat chaff worth thousands of rupees was gutted in a mysterious fire in a wheat field at Chak 12/BC. The rescuers controlled the fire after several hours of struggle.

INJURED: Five people suffered serious injuries as two rival groups clashed over an old enmity at the Rajapur Musawala in Lodhran.

The injured were identified as Syed Riaz Shah, Mukhtar Shah, Syed Riaz, Ayyaz Shah and Syed Ijaz Shah.

Police reached the scene to proceed against both rival group members.

Published in Dawn, April 26th, 2023