Senate Polls: MQM-P undecided over supporting Vawda, final candidates

The Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) has not finalised the names of its candidates for the Senate polls as party leaders urged for awarding tickets to party members, ARY News reported, citing sources.

Sources told ARY News that the party is considering the names of Amir Chishti and Shehbaz Zaheer along with other potential candidates.

MQM-P will finalise the names in the central ad-hoc committee meeting where the issue of supporting Faisal Vawda will also come under discussion.

Meanwhile, several MQM leaders oppose the party supporting Vawda in the upcoming Senate elections.

It is pertinent to mention that the MQM-P’s two MPAs had proposed and seconded nomination papers of Vawda for Senate election.

The party had recently also expressed its willingness to see former federal minister Faisal Vawda join its ranks.

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on March 14 issued schedule for elections on 48 vacant seats of the Senate.

According to the schedule, polling will be held on the second of next month from 9 am to 4 pm.

In the federal capital, members of the National Assembly will elect members of the Senate against one general seat and one seat for technocrats including Ulema.

Members of the four provincial assemblies will elect Senators for seven general seats, two women seats, and two seats for technocrats including Ulema from each province, as well as one seat for non-Muslims from both Punjab and Sindh provinces.

The ECP said that the Senate polls will not be carried out on four seats reserved for the erstwhile tribal areas.

“These seats have been abolished after the merger of tribal areas into Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) under the 25th Amendment of the Constitution,” read an ECP statement.