MULTAN, Feb 2: Efforts to table a no-confidence move against Muzaffargarh District Nazim Sardar Abdul Qayyum Jatoi have intensified and both groups have claimed to have attained the desired numbers of votes to meet their goals.

Jatoi told Dawn on Friday that any Punjab-government backed no-confidence move against him would fail and “selfish” people would also face defeat in the next general elections.

He said the Punjab chief minister was punishing the people of Muzaffargarh for electing him their top local council representative.

He reiterated that a majority of union council nazims would stand by him if a no-confidence move was launched against him.

He alleged that the chief minister was using public machinery against him and the police were harassing nazims and pressing them to make the no-confidence move successful.

Ali Raza Shamsi, Punjab-government-backed district naib nazim, said that they had the favour of 96 union nazims.

He said that development funds would be released after the no-confidence move against the district nazim was either succeeded or failed. Without giving any schedule for tabling the move, he said the ruling party had not finalised the next candidate for district nazim.

Mian Muhammad Hussain Munna Sheikh, union council nazim, said that the no-confidence-move would fail even though members of the National and Provincial assemblies were threatening nazims to attend their feasts so that they could show their efficiency to the chief minister.

He said the chief minister had not learnt any lesson from their failed attempt to remove the Kharian tehsil nazim. He said if show-of-hand was to be adopted in the move against the nazim, Jatoi would certainly face defeat. “But according to law, polling will be done through secret ballot and in that case, Jatoi will survive,” he said.

Separately, Justice Muhammad Jahangeer Arshad of the Lahore High Court, Multan bench, has summoned the district naib nazim and asked him to explain why he did not call the district assembly session for budget.

Hearing a writ petition filed by Jatoi on Thursday, Justice Arshad said that if the government had decided to sink all the people of Muzaffargarh in a bid to corner the district nazim.

He said that the local bodies’ secretary had asked the district coordination officer (DCO) to prepare the budget but it was a big question that “how can a DCO supersede when a district naizm is present”.

He said that if the district nazim was guilty of any wrongdoings, what action had been taken by the government against him.

The court said if the district nazim could not perform his job, the district assembly should be suspended and the government had authority to do so.

Jatoi has taken stand in his petition that the government was creating hurdles for him after he had refused to join the ruling party.

He said the assembly had passed budget according to law but the provincial government had objected to it and had not released funds.