As political parties intensify their election efforts, Captain (retd) Safdar, a leader of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), has declared that the party’s leader, Nawaz Sharif, intends to contest the upcoming polls from Mansehra’s NA 15.
Safdar, the husband of PML-N Chief Organiser Maryam Nawaz, stated on Wednesday that Nawaz Sharif would submit his nomination papers for the National Assembly seat “NA 15 Mansehra-cum-TorGhar” by December 21.
This announcement coincides with the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) commencing the acceptance of nomination papers from potential candidates for the polls scheduled for February 8, 2024. Documents obtained by Geo News reveal Nawaz’s inclusion in the list of nomination forms issued for the specified constituency. NA-15 has traditionally been a stronghold for PML-N, securing the seat in both the 2013 and 2018 elections.
Nawaz Sharif, who returned to Pakistan in October following a four-year self-imposed exile, has been actively leading the party’s election campaign, aiming for a fourth term as the country’s chief executive. Despite the Islamabad High Court quashing his sentences in the Avenfield and Al Azizia references, Nawaz faces the hurdle of needing the lifelong ban on holding public office lifted, imposed by the Supreme Court in the Panama Papers Case.
In a parallel development, the political rival of PML-N, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), announced that its founder, Imran Khan, currently incarcerated and disqualified by the ECP in the Toshakhana case, will contest the general elections from at least three constituencies. PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar stated that Khan will vie for seats in Lahore, Islamabad, and Mianwali.
These announcements come in the wake of the ECP, following the Supreme Court’s directions, releasing the election schedule on December 15. This action dispelled rumors of potential delays in the polls after the top court suspended the Lahore High Court’s ruling against the electoral body’s notification on the appointment of returning officers (ROs) and district returning officers (DROs).
