LAHORE/ISLAMABAD: At least 132 nominations have been filed by six political parties for the 66 seats reserved for women in the Punjab Assembly, while the PTI is missing from the scene, claiming that its list of nominations has been withheld by the ECP.

It seems that the PTI’s troubles stem from the party being denied an electoral symbol.

The PML-N has submitted a list with 58 nominations for the Punjab Assembly, with Ms Zakia Khan topping the list, followed by Ishrat Ashraf, the wife of former NA deputy speaker Chaudhry Jafar Iqbal, ex-MNA Tehmina Daultana and PML-N information secretary Marriyum Aurangzeb. The party has also accommodated PTI turncoat Uzma Kardar.

Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), the right-wing party that surprised many by securing the fourth position in terms of the tally of votes in the 2018 general election, has submitted a list of 23 women for reserved seats, while the Jamaat-i-Islami has come up with a list of 21 nominees.

The PPPP has given a list of 10 nominees, which includes ex-MPAs Shazia Abid and Neelum Jabbar Chaudhry, women wing leader Nargis Faiz Malik, old guard Shahida Jabeen, and Sonia Khan.

The Istehkam-i-Pakistan Party (IPP) of Jahangir Tareen has submitted a list containing 14 nominations. Prominent among them are Child Protection Bureau head Sarah Ahmed and former PTI MPA Sadia Suhail Rana.

The Pakistan Nazriyati Party and Pakistan Markazi Muslim League (PMML) have each given three nominations, all of whom are politically unknown.

For eight seats reserved for non-Muslims, there are 31 nominations by various parties. The PML-N has suggested 14 names, PPP-P six, JI four, IPP three, TLP two, PTI Nazriati and Pakistan Nazriyati Party one each.

Sardar Ramesh Arora and Khalil Tahir Sindhu are old-timers on the PML-N’s list, while Joyce Ruffin Julius is reappearing after the 2002-07 and 2007-13 assemblies, when she had been elected to the house from PML-Q’s quota.

For the National Assembly, the PPP has given 13 names, the PML-N 20 and the Grand Democratic Alliance 8.

With input from Syed Irfan Raza

Published in Dawn, December 25th, 2023