MANSEHRA: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz supremo and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif may possibly contest the upcoming National Assembly election in Mansehra district, party leader Sardar Mohammad Yusuf said on Saturday.

“The proposal of Mian Nawaz Sharif contesting the Feb 8 election from Mansehra’s NA-15 constituency is under consideration but there’s a fifty-fifty chance of its approval,” Mr Yusuf told reporters.

He said the PML-N would finalise its candidates for the upcoming elections in Hazara and Malakand divisions on Tuesday (Dec 5).

“We [parliamentary board] has stopped receiving applications for election tickets in Hazara division and is going to finalise poll nominations on Dec 5,” he said.

PML-N to decide about Hazara, Malakand poll tickets on Dec 5

The PML-N leader said Mr Sharif would chair the board meeting for finalising the names of candidates for Hazara and Malakand elections.

He said besides him, Mr Sharif’s son-in-law retired Captain Mohammad Safdar, former deputy speaker of the National Assembly Murtaza Javed Abbasi and former MPA Aurangzeb Nalotha were also part of the parliamentary board for Hazara Division.

Mr Yusuf said around 20 people applied for the PML-N tickets to contest elections in seven National Assembly constituencies, while 41 applications were filed with the board for nomination in 17 provincial assembly constituencies.

He said that he was the party’s candidate for NA-14 and Mr Safdar for NA-15 and no one from within the party wanted to contest election in those constituencies.

The PML-N leader said the board received a record number of applications for Abbottabad’s two National Assembly and Mansehra’s five provincial assembly tickets.

The Hazara Division has seven National Assembly and 17 provincial assembly constituencies, including two NA and five provincial assembly ones in Mansehra, two NA and three provincial assembly in Abbottabad,one NA and two provincial assembly in Battagram, one NA and three provincial assembly in Kohistan region, one NA and two provincial assembly in Haripur, and one provincial assembly for Torghar. One NA seat is shared by Torghar and Mansehra.

Meanwhile, the residents, including local body representatives, on Saturday demanded of authorities not to shift the driving licence facility from Oghi tehsil.

“We’re opposed to the relocation of the driving test and licence issuance branch from here to Mansehra,” chairman of the Oghi neighbourhood council Wajid Ali told reporters.

Leading a group of locals, Mr Ali said the shifting of the branch had stressed out the people seeking issuance and renewal of driving licences.

“The DIG of Hazara police and district police officer of Mansehra should take notice of the situation and ensure the diving licence issuance from here,” he said.

Published in Dawn, December 3rd, 2023