MUZAFFARGARH, June 7: By-election for NA-177, the seat vacated by independent candidate Jamshed Dasti, is once again attracting traditional political players.
The schedule for by-election has not been announced but candidates are trying to win PML-N ticket because Jamshed Dasti has failed to win the favour of the ruling party. Dasti is set to field his brother Javed Dasti for the seat.
During the May 11 vote, Dasti got 103,327 votes while runner-up Rabbani Khar, the father of former foreign minister Hina Rabbani Khar, got 49,822 votes as PPP candidate, Khalid Gurmani of PML-N 22,719, independents Zulfiqar Qureshi 13,757 and Rafique Khar 14,623 votes.
Rabbani Khar said he would again run for the seat as a PPP candidate and has already started his campaign.
A former PPP MNA, Dasti left the party two days before the dissolution of assemblies in March and went into the election as an independent candidate and won both NA-177 and 178. During the electioneering in NA-177, he had promised to the people of the constituency that he would not vacate this seat.
One of the contenders for the PML-N ticket is MPA Mian Zeeshan Gurmani.
Elected as an independent from PP-253, he joined the PML-N before the government formation. He claimed that he had met with PML-N chief Mian Shahbaz Sharif and requested him to give him party ticket for NA-177 as he would win the seat easily.
Another independent MPA Mian Alamdar Qureshi, who is also in PML-N now, said the ruling party had not decided about the ticket.
Sources said that Shahbaz Sharif had offered ticket to Malik Qasim Hinjra, nephew of PML-N MNA from NA-176 Sultan Hinjra, to contest the election.
Former governor Ghulam Mustafa Khar, who is president of Punjab PML-F, is also trying to get PML-N ticket. Before the general election, he was refused ticket by the PML-N for NA-176.
Khar’s son Abdul Rehman said Pir Pagara would try to get PML-N ticket for Mustafa Khar. He said even if ticket was not given to them, Mustafa would be a candidate at any cost.
Mian Khalid Gurmani, who was PML-N candidate in the May 11 elections, claimed that now with the support of provincial and federal governments he would win the seat and he was hopeful for the party ticket.