ISLAMABAD - With the decision of the party ticket from National Assembly constituency NA-55 in favour of Malik Shakeel Awan, now the list of PML-N candidates for National and provincial assembly seats in Rawalpindi division is final and the formal announcement in this connection would be made in next couple of days with the final lists of party candidates in Punjab.
Meanwhile, the party candidates for the two National Assembly seats from federal capital are already finalised and the little confusion about NA-48 was also over with the party’s decision not to go for seat adjustment with Jamaat-I-Islami, which was interested in this seat from federal capital, besides a dozen seats in various parts of the Punjab. Sources in the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) informed TheNation that party decision to repeat Malik Shakeel Awan as party candidate from NA-55 has annoyed Sardar Naseem, another very strong contender of the party ticket, who has declined the party offer to contest elections on a Punjab Assembly seat from the area.
Ch Nisar Ali Khan, who is the key person in awarding the party ticket to the candidates in the area, along with senior party leaders held meeting with Sardar Naseem and made him agreed to contest elections from PP-12, one of the provincial assembly seat under NA-55, sources aware of the development informed TheNation.
Sources in the party informed when Ch Nisar went to see Sardar Naseem he did not utter a single word and said that he could not argue with Ch Nisar as he kept him in high esteem and agreed to the party decision to contest elections from PP-12.
Sources further said that with the decision of candidate on NA-55, the party candidates list for both National and Punjab Assembly seats is complete and now the formal announcement in this connection would be made in next couple of day along with the rest of the candidates for the Punjab. Giving details of the candidates for National and Provincial Assembly candidates for Rawalpindi Division sources in the party said that in Rawalpindi except PP-12 from where now Sardar Naseem would contest elections on rest of the seats the candidates are repeated.
From NA-54 comprising the Rawalpindi and Chaklala Cantonment areas the outgoing party MNA Malik Ibrar was given the party ticket while on the two provincial assembly seats in this constituency - PP-9 and PP-10 - the former MPAs Ch Ayaz and Malik Iftikhar were finalised.
Similarly from NA-55, the outgoing MNA Malik Shakeel Awan was once again finalised as party candidate while on two provincial assembly seats in this constituency - PP-11 and PP-12 - Ziaullah Shah is repeated while from PP-12 Sardar Naseem was brought in replacing Shaharyar Riaz, who was elected from this constituency on PML-N ticket in 2008 elections. Again in NA-56 and the two provincial assembly seats under it PP-13 and PP-14 Mohammad Hanif Abbassi would contest for NA while Raja Hanif and Malik Raza would contest in his wings. All the three were holding these seats in the previous assemblies.
From the National Assembly constituency NA-50 comprising Murree, Kotli Sattian and Kahuta, the party would be coming up with the Shahid Khaqan Abbassi who had been winning from the area for past several elections.
While from NA-51 the hometown of former prime minister Raja Pervez Ashraf, PML-N has decided to field Raja Javid Ikhlas, who had joined military-tailored Q-League after the removal of Mian Nawaz Sharif government by the then dictator.
While from NA-52 and NA-53, PML-N central leader and former Leader of Opposition Ch Nisar would be contesting on the party ticket.
Similarly the party would be repeating its former MNAs Anjum Aqeel Khan and Dr Tariq Fazal Chaudhry from the federal capital’s two National Assembly constituencies NA-48 and NA-49 respectively.