LAKKI MARWAT, Dec 16: The candidate of the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) for PF-74, Lakki Marwat-I, Amin Jan Khan has pulled out of the contest in favour of an independent candidate and former federal minister, Anwar Saifullah Khan, who is being backed by the Saifullahs of PML-Q and the Anwar Kamal group of PML-N.

Amin Jan Khan, a contractor by profession, withdrew his papers on Saturday and now he would support Anwar Saifullah Khan.

At a public gathering held at the residence of Amin Jan in village Nar Mohammad Ghaznikhel on Sunday, Anwar Saifullah welcomed Mr Jan’s decision and said that his group had the agenda of transforming the backwardness of the district into development.

He said religious leaders had been exposed during the last five years because they had not fulfilled their promises of enforcing Shariat in the province.

The former minister hoped that people would not repeat the mistake of casting votes for the candidates of religious parties.

“Do not pay any heed to the slogans of the so-called religious elements declaring the elections as a fight between kufr and Islam and cast your votes without any fear,” he said, adding that it was the fight between two types of candidates; one who want to bring development and the others who only want personal benefits.

Meanwhile, the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal candidate for NA-27, Pir Dr Mohammad Khalid Raza Zakori, and former MPA Malik Imran Khan Marwat, a candidate for PF-75, Lakki Marwat-II, launched their campaign by organising a public meeting at the Umar Adda on Sunday.

Speaking on the occasion,

Pir Khalid, Malik Imran and others criticised the Saifullah family, and said that the influential family had ignored the district in development projects.

“During the previous tenure of the MMA government a lot of development schemes were implemented in the district so as to provide the people with basic amenities of life at their doorstep,” they said.