BY USMAN MUJTABA LEGHARI
DG KHAN: NA-191 DG Khan-III, a constituency which includes DG Khan City and consists mostly of the urban population, has been ruled by feudal lords for long, particularly Leghari and Khosa sardars (chieftains).
There was a time when this constituency was considered as a stronghold of PML-N but now the political atmosphere has changed a great deal and the previous position seems to be nowhere.
The politics in this constituency is dominated by certain powerful families that can make or break major parties’ political clout in the area. Major clans in the area include Leghari, Khosa, Chandia, Buzdar, Sheikh, Khattak, Akhwand, Babar, Ghishkori and Sials.
While all the election candidates are trying to convince these tribes, generally the entire clan used to vote the candidate selected by the head of the clan. But now this situation seems to change as the youth of DG Khan have become rebellious of feudalism.
According to details provided by the ECP, the total number of registered voters in the constituency, consisting of 17 union councils, is 375,287, which includes 211,152 male and 164,135 female voters. There are 261 polling stations in the constituency with 746 polling booths, 336 of which are for women and 410 for men.
A neck to neck contest is expected among three contestants which include former federal minister Sardar Awais Khan Leghari contesting from Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), former Punjab chief minister Sardar Dost Muhammad Khosa contesting as an independent on the symbol of jeep, and Zartaj Gul Wazir contesting from Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) ticket.
In 2013 general election, Zartaj had secured almost 39,000 votes. Zartaj Gul has chances to win as her popularity has risen since the start of campaign while the popularity of PTI in this constituency is also rising.
The provincial assembly seats that fall under NA-191 are PP-289 DG Khan-V and PP-290 DG Khan-VI.
In PP-289, PTI candidate Dr Shahina Najeeb is contesting against PML-N candidate Syed Abdul Aleem Shah, while Sardar Dost Muhammad Khan Khosa and Hanif Pitafi are contesting as independent candidates. A tough contest is expected between both independent candidates Sardar Dost Muhammad and Hanif Pitafi.
Hanif Pitafi will reportedly be successful in the contest.
From PP-290, former MPA Sardar Ahmad Ali Khan Dareshak is contesting from PTI ticket against PML-N’s Sardar Muhammad Ahmad Khan Leghari.
In 2013, Sardar Ahmad Ali Dareshak was elected as an MPA on the ticket of PTI. Other candidates in the race are Malik Ramzan Qadir of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Usama Abdul Kareem as an independent besides five other candidates.
Sardar Ahmad Ali Dareshak and Sardar Muhammad Ahmad Khan Leghari are the frontrunners in the race but according to public circles, Ahmad Ali is expected to win.
