NAROWAL: Former minister and MNA Daniyal Aziz’s ongoing statements against PML-N Secretary General Ahsan Iqbal have raised a question mark about Mr Aziz’s future political course.

As the party has issued him a notice, it is believed that he may explore other options if the party does not grant him a ticket for NA-75.

The constituency covers the tehsils of Shakargarh and Zafarwal in the Narowal district.

According to Irfan Khan, a Shakargarh-based journalist, Mr Aziz’s political position is very strong in his constituency due to his continuous connections with the public.

He said if Mr Aziz is denied the PML-N ticket, he may enter the polls as an independent candidate, and in that case, either former MNA Tariq Anees Chaudhry or former MNA/MLA Mian Rasheed will likely be the PML-N candidate.

Of them, Mr Rasheed won the MNA election on the PML-N ticket in 2013, and Mr Chaudhry won as an independent candidate in 2008.

In 2018, Mr Rasheed was a PTI candidate for NA-75.

Mr Khan said most of the voters of Mr Rasheed belong to Zafarwal tehsil. He said that Mr Chaudhry as a PML-N candidate can put up a tough contest against Mr Aziz.

Zafarwal-based journalist Amir Irshad said that Mr Aziz is a strong candidate for NA-75. He said if the PML-N fields Ahmad Iqbal for PP-54 and Hafiz Shabbir for PP-55 under Mr Aziz’s NA constituency, Mr Aziz will win his NA seat but both provincial candidates will lose the seats for Mr Iqbal, son of Ahsan Iqbal, has no vote bank in PP 54.

He said that former MPAs Owais Qasim Khan and Pir Syed Saeedul Hasan Shah are strong candidates. He said Mr Aziz will contest the election as an independent candidate with Owais Qasim as the PP-54 candidate and Maulana Ghiyasuddin as the PP-55 candidate.

He said that the PML-N and the PTI do not have a third strong political personality who can compete with Mr Aziz in the election.

Mr Aziz’s father, former federal minister Anwar Aziz Chaudhry (late), had been a main political and social figure in the area and nationwide for several decades.

Published in Dawn, December 8th, 2023