Daily Times

LAHORE: As the scrutiny of nomination papers ended on Tuesday, the nomination papers of several key political leaders were accepted, while some suffered setbacks as well.

The Election Commission of Pakistan will start accepting appeals against decisions taken during the scrutiny stage from today up to June 22. Once decisions have been reached on appeals, a final list of candidates will be released by the Election Commission of Pakistan on June 28.

PML-N, PPP and PTI

In the PML-N, all members of the Sharif family who submitted papers with the ECP were given a green signal to contest elections. Party president Shehbaz Sharif’s nomination papers were accepted for Lahore’s NA-132, Karachi’s NA-249 and NA-250, and NA-3 in Swat. Hamza Shehbaz was cleared to contest the election from NA-132, NA-124 and PP-146 constituencies of Lahore.

PML-N leader Maryam Nawaz’s candidacy for PP-173 was approved on Tuesday. A day earlier, her papers were approved for NA-125.

Former PM Shahid Khaqqan Abbasi’s papers for NA-53 Islamabad were rejected on grounds that a mandatory affidavit was not filled properly.

Ayaz Sadiq, the former speaker of the National Assembly, was cleared to contest the polls from Lahore’s NA-129. Former interior minister Ahsan Iqbal was cleared to contest from his hometown constituency of NA-78 (Narowal), while PML-N’s KP leader Amir Muqam’s papers from approved for PK-4 in Swat.

On Monday, former Punjab law minister Rana Sanaullah’s candidacy for NA-106 in Faisalabad was also approved after he appeared before the RO amid tight security.

Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari’s papers were accepted for NA-246 in Karachi. Former president Asif Ali Zardari was cleared to contest the polls from NA-213 in Nawabshah as two petitioners withdrew objections against his candidature. Objections against PPP leader Faryal Talpur’s papers filed for PS-10 Larkana were dismissed on Monday after her counsel presented arguments before the RO.

Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf chairman Imran Khan’s nomination papers were accepted for NA seats in Karachi, Bannu, Dera Ghazi Khan, but his papers for NA-53 Islamabad were rejected on grounds that an affidavit required to be filled by candidates was incomplete.

Among PTI leaders cleared for the elections on Tuesday were Aleem Khan and his wife, Kiran Aleem, whose papers were approved for Lahore’s NA-131 and NA-129, respectively. Aleem Khan will also contest the election from PP-148 Lahore.

Other parties

Other prominent candidates whose papers were approved on Tuesday included social activist Jibran Nasir (NA-247 Karachi). Objections on PSP leader Fauzia Kasuri’s nomination papers for NA-247 were reportedly withdrawn after she presented a document certifying that she had renounced her foreign nationality.

Jamiat Ulema-e Islam (F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s papers were approved for NA-38 in Dera Ismail Khan, veteran politician Javed Hashmi’s for NA-155 in Multan, and Qaumi Watan Party chairperson Aftab Sherpao’s for NA-23 in Charsadda.

Disgruntled N-leaguer Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan’s nomination papers were accepted for NA-63 in Taxila.

Former PPP leader Zulfiqar Mirza, who recently joined the Grand Democratic Alliance, was allowed to contest elections from PS-74 in Badin, while estranged PTI leader Ayesha Gulalai’s papers were approved from NA-231 in Sajawal.

Former speaker of the Balochistan Assembly, Raheela Hameed Khan Durrani, was allowed to contest from NA-265, while former federal minister for religious affairs Hamid Saeed Kazmi’s papers were approved from NA-175 in Liaquatpur. Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) chief Mahmood Khan Achakzai’s nomination papers for NA-263 in Qilla Abdullah were also approved, along with those of former Balochistan chief minister Nawab Sanaullah Zehri for PB-38 in Khuzdar.

Rejected

On Tuesday, MQM-Pakistan leader Farooq Sattar’s papers were rejected from NA-245 Karachi on grounds that he had not disclosed in the affidavit that he was absconding from the court in two FIRs registered on hate speech charges pertaining to speeches made in 2015 by MQM-London chief Altaf Hussain. General (retd) Pervaiz Musharraf’s papers were rejected from NA-1 Chitral. These and other contestants who suffered setbacks during the scrutiny phase can file appeals against the rejection decisions with tribunals formed for the purpose across the country.

24% decline in nomination paper submissions

A total of 21,482 nomination papers were filed across the country for national and provincial assembly seats, according to the ECP. Of these, 6,063 were for NA seats, while 15,419 for provincial assembly seats. A comparison of 2018 figures with the 2013 election data shows that submission of nomination papers has declined by around 24 percent over the two election cycles. In 2013, 28,302 contenders submitted papers for various national and provincial assembly seats.

Published in Daily Times, June 20^th 2018.