BAHAWALPUR, June 21: The People's Party Parliamentarian candidates and leaders have allegedly started a pre-poll rigging propaganda instead of canvassing for by-polls.

By-election to three Punjab Assembly seats from Bahawalpur district - PP-269 (Ahmedpur East tehsil), PP-275 and PP-276 (Yazman tehsil) - will be held on July 3. The PPP leaders allegedly want to prove the fact that the government and its machinery were out to defeat the rival candidates.

However, the PPP allegation against the ruling coalition and District Nazim Tariq Cheema is to lure the voters, who are favouring the ruling party candidates due to the influence of Tariq Cheema.

The PPP candidates have neither extensively visited the areas of their respective constituencies nor have they displayed posters and hold any corner or public meetings so far.

The party high command has nominated Riaz Dahar (PP-269), Ijaz Rasool (PP-275) and Iftikhar Cheema (PP-276) for the by election, but they are not of such a stature that they could secure a good number of votes.

Even, the general public and the voters are not familiar to them. The ruling party nominees namely Sardar Malik Khalid Mahmood Warren (PP-269), Shoaib Karim (PP-275) and Dr Mohammad Afzal (PP-276) have more potential to win the election as compared to the PPP candidates.

Moreover, Yazman tehsil is the stronghold of district Nazim, who has his personal votebank in the area, and this had been proved twice during the past when for the first time in October 2000, PPP leader Aitzaz Ahsan and then in January 2003, independent candidate Syed Tasneem Nawaz Gardezi emerged as winners. Still, there is a feeling that the candidates of Tariq Cheema will carry the day on July 3.

As regards PP-269, this is mainly a seat of rural areas where the Warren family has a complete hold over the oppressed people, and thus the PPP candidate will have no support on the polling day reportedly due to party's weak organizations both in Yazman and Ahmadpur East tehsils. Due to a relaxed mood of PPP candidates, their rivals are also taking the by election lightly, and they too are canvassing on a small scale.