ABBOTTABAD: Nomination papers of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Speaker Mushtaq Ahmed Ghani for PK-45, Abbottabad-I, were rejected by the returning officer as he could not appear before him for the scrutiny of papers.

The main charge leveled against Mr Ghani was that he was nominated in FIRs filed at different police stations against him.

He is currently staying in the UK, according to family sources.

Mr Ghani’s nomination papers were filed by his elder brother, Ilyas Ghani. He had also got transit bail on December 19 from Peshawar High Court till Dec 27, but he could not land in Peshawar as planned.

Mr Ghani through his counsel pleaded before the RO that his passport had expired and he had applied online for its renewal.

However, nomination papers of his wife, Farzana Mushtaq were accepted for PK-45. His wife also remained MNA from PML-Q in the past.

Published in Dawn, December 28th, 2023