HYDERABAD, June 20: Dr Sajila Leghari, the widow of PML’s MPA from Johi, Dr Manzoor Leghari, has appealed to PML president Chaudhry Shujaat and secretary-general Mushahid Hussain to announce that she will be the candidate for by-election for PS-75.

Speaking at a press conference at the press club on Monday, Dr Sajeela Leghari said that she had been given ticket by Chaudhry Shujaat but a news on a TV channel indicated that Zulfikar Babar would be the PML candidate for the by-election.

“The seat belongs to our ancestors as my father-in-law and my husband contested on the seat and won. Now I want to contest on the seat because my husband’s tenure as MPA is yet to be over”, she said.

She said that first Liaquat Jatoi tried to field his brother-in-law Chakkar Khan Shahani and now one Zulfikar Babbar, who is otherwise an unknown person, was being tipped as PML’s candidate for by-election.

She said that had she not been interested in contesting elections, she would not have submitted her nomination without caring for “iddat” — a period under which a Muslim woman remains within house after death of her husband.

“Chaudhry saheb please do me justice. Let the PML leadership visit Johi and collect information about our family”, she said.

She said that she had submitted ticket, signed by Chaudhry Shujaat along with her nomination form and added that now Jatoi brothers were showing a blank ticket which they said was issued by the PML president.

“Our family had been contesting this eat since 1953. Now Chaudhry Shujaat must announce who is going to contest as PML candidate on the seat because both of us possess tickets now”, said Dr Sajeela Leghari.

She said that she had been trying to get in touch with the PML president but he was not available while Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim has gone for umrah.

She said that she had full confidence in the PML leadership.

“It is very painful that Jatoi brothers are not even waiting for tenure of late Dr Leghari as MPA to be completed and they want to field their own candidate”, she said.

“I am not going to give in on this seat and I will contest”, she declared and expressed surprise that Jatoi brothers had told the PML leadership that since she was a woman she could not contest elections.

She said that she had filled in a form on the request of Jatoi brothers to show that she was with them.