LAHORE   -  A compelling electoral showdown is on the horizon in NA-122 Lahore, featuring heavyweight candidates Khawaja Saad Rafique of the PML-N and Sardar Latif Khosa of the PTI. 

Rafique, backed by the PML-N, holds a significant advantage over Khosa in various aspects.

Sardar Latif Khosa, a former Punjab Governor, recently made the switch to PTI from PPP and is making his electoral debut against a seasoned politician Rafique. Despite hailing from DG Khan, Khosa has resided in DHA Lahore for many years. His re­liance on PTI’s perceived popularity, especially amid the incarceration of its founding chairman, marks his strategy. However, Khosa’s campaign lacks vigor, and he recently raised concerns about voter allocations in DHA, prompting a complaint to the Election Commission. Despite initially filing nomination papers for NA-127, where Bilawal Bhu­tto is contesting, Khosa shifted focus to NA-122.As Khosa is not legally eligible to contest under PTI’s “Bat” symbol, it may further diminish his chances of success. 

In contrast, Khawaja Saad Rafique boasts extensive elector­al experience, notably winning the NA-122 seat in a closely con­tested 2018 by-election against Imran Khan.

Rafique’s mastery lies in poll­ing day management, consistent­ly mobilizing a substantial voter base. His adept team ensures ef­ficient polling station operations, a strategy that has historically yielded favorable results.

The contest in NA-122 is pri­marily a two-way battle, with PPP and IPP abstaining from fielding candidates. Zubair Basharat of JI and Mohammad Imtiaz of TLP are in the race but are not signifi­cant contenders. The constituen­cy encompasses cantonment ar­eas like Walton, Cavalry Ground, R.A Bazar, and DHA.

The electoral history of NA-122, formerly NA-131, is notably intriguing, particularly since the 2018 general elections. This con­stituency, predominantly com­prising Lahore’s cantonment ar­eas, witnessed intense political battles involving prominent fig­ures such as former Prime Min­ister Imran Khan, Khawaja Saad Rafique of the PML-N, and Huma­yun Akhtar of the PTI.

In the 2018 elections, Imran Khan clinched victory in NA-122 by a narrow margin of 680 votes after a controversial re­count, defeating Khawaja Saad Rafique. Imran Ahmad Niazi se­cured 84,313 votes, while Kha­waja Saad Rafique garnered 83,633 votes. Despite losing at the national level, Khawaja Saad secured a provincial seat, PP-168, Lahore, triumphing over Faiz Bhatti of the PTI by a signifi­cant margin of 19,169 votes. Sub­sequently, Saad vacated his pro­vincial seat to contest and win a bye-election in NA-131 after Im­ran Khan relinquished the seat to retain the one he won from Mian­wali, his hometown.

The bye-election in NA-131 occurred on October 14, 2018, where Saad defeated Huma­yun Akhtar of the PTI, securing 60,747 votes against Humayun’s 50,445 votes. Another bye-elec­tion was conducted in PP-168, Lahore, resulting in the PML-N’s loss to Malik Asad Khokhar of the PTI. Asad triumphed over Rana Khalid of the PML-N by a slim margin of 687 votes. Interesting­ly, Asad Khokhar had previous­ly faced defeat in the 2018 gen­eral elections for a national seat from Lahore, while Malik Afzal Khokhar of the PML-N emerged victorious from NA-136. 

PP-155

PP-155 stands as an allied pro­vincial constituency to NA-122. The electoral outcomes within this constituency remain high­ly uncertain, given that all can­didates from mainstream par­ties are contesting for the first time. Naeem Shehzad represents PML-N, while PTI has nominated its Lahore President, Sheikh Im­tiaz. Muneeba Anis from PPP, If­tikhar Ahmad from JI, and Mo­hammad Umar from TLP are also competing, albeit with minimal prospects of winning. IPP has refrained from nominating any candidate in this constituency. 

PP-156

Mohammad Yasin Amir of the PML-N holds a distinct advantage over other contenders in the up­coming election, having secured victory from this constituency in the 2018 elections. His victory then was over Aleem Khan of the PTI by a slim margin of 725 votes. However, Aleem Khan went on to win a Punjab Assembly seat in another provincial constituency, PP-158, where he defeated Rana Ahsan of the PML-N.

Imtiaz Warriach, a newcom­er to politics, is contesting on the PTI ticket, albeit without the party’s election symbol. Zainab Rizwan from PPP is also a first-time candidate and relatively un­known in this constituency. Mo­hammad Khobabib Nazeer from JI and Dilshad Ahmad Zahid from TLP are also participating in the race. IPP has not nominated a candidate for this contest.

PP-157

Naseer Ahmad Bhutta of the PML-N, who emerged victori­ous in the 2018 elections, holds a promising prospect of securing victory once again from this con­stituency. In the previous elec­tion, he defeated Bilal Aslam of the PTI by a narrow margin of 2,028 votes. Challenging Bhutta is Hafiz Farhat Abbas, a newcom­er representing the PTI. Addition­ally, Ch Adnan Sarwar from PPP is also a first-time contender in this electoral arena. IPP has opted not to field a candidate, leaving the seat vacant for other parties. Mo­hammad Irfan from JI and Hafiz Mumtaz Ahmad from TLP are also among the contestants vying for victory in this constituency.