Dawn follows a young student, Nasir Bhatti, as he juggles college with electioneering on behalf of Mian Javed Latif, a well-known PML-N candidate from his biradari.

The piece sheds light on how candidates elbow others out with promises of being there for them when the time comes, relying on their affiliation with influential groups to whip up votes.

“People here vote for someone they can turn to in their hour of need,” Bhatti tells our correspondent.

Read on to find out how dharay ki siasat (the politics of influence) works.