FAISALABAD, Jan 24: A union council nazim, Shahzad Moazzam, who was nominated in an FIR registered by the Ghulam Muhammadabad police for abducting a woman, on Thursday swore on the Holy Quran that he had not committed the crime he had been implicated in.

He pleaded not guilty along with his minor daughter who also swore on the glorious Quran at Clock Tower intersection amid scores of PPP leaders and other people. Alleged victim Farzana Bibi had demanded that the suspect and his children swear by the holy book that they are innocent.

Also joining them was Shahzad’s elder brother Dr Asad Moazzam, the PPP city secretary-general, who said he wanted to end a two-week long political rift with City District Nazim Rana Zahid Tauseef whose younger brother, Arif Tauseef, is contesting the election from PP-67 against Dr Asad.

The PPP local leadership and the accused party announced that they would prove their innocence, after a party meeting held under the chair of city president Mahmoodul Hassan Dar. Shahzad said he was implicated in the case on political grounds.

Present on the occasion were Raja Riaz Ahmad, Riaz Shahid and others who said the PML-Q would soon be a matter of past and it was using negative tactics to undermine the popularity of the PPP. They criticised Farzana for not turning up to the venue despite raising hue and cry and slandering the PPP candidate.

The PPP activists also staged a rally from Clock Tower to the press club.

A row between two political stalwarts of the district started when an abduction case was registered against Shahzad Moazzam under section 496-A of the Women Protection Act. He was, however, not arrested. The PPP held the district nazim responsible for implication to dent the PPP’s political standing.

Several PPP ticket-holders and office-bearers met DIG (Operations) Muhammad Aslam Tareen the other day, asking him to intervene and stop defamation of Dr Asad Moazzam’s family. They informed the DIG that in keeping with the alleged victim’s demand, the suspect would swear on the Holy Quran that he had done nothing wrong.