On July 17, the control of the Punjab Assembly will be on the line, as the race for 20 seats in the province heats up.
In Pakistan’s most politically important province, the Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) is hoping to maintain its narrow control. While the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) is aiming to wrest the province away from the ruling party.
Who could tip the balance in their favour?
In the run-up to the by-polls, Geo.tv provides an in-depth look into the constituency:
A profile of the constituency
- Total voters: 201,995
- Male voters: 113,396
- Female voters: 88,599
PP-288 falls under NA-190, won by PTI’s disgruntled MNA Amjad Farooq Khan Khosa in 2018.
2018 winner: In the 2018 election, this constituency was secured by the independent candidate, Mohsin Atta Khan Khosa, who defeated PTI’s Muhammad Saif-ud-Din Khosa by over 9,000 votes.
Mohsin Khosa joined PTI after the 2018 election on the insistence of businessman Jahangir Khan Tareen. This year, he was unseated by the Election Commission for voting against his party, PTI’s direction in the chief minister Punjab election.
Contesting candidates
Mohsin Khosa has decided to sit this election out, which is why PTI’s rebel MNA, Amjad Farooq Khosa, has fielded his son, Abdul Qadir Khosa, as the PML-N candidate.
On the other side, PTI has allotted the ticket to Saif-ud-Din Khosa, who was also the party’s candidate from this constituency in 2018. Khosa is the son of former governor Punjab, Zulfiqar Ali Khosa.
Who could win?
Till now, both candidates have an equal chance to win, as both are from the same clan.
Abdul Qadir Khosa is young, energetic, and is contesting the election for the first time. Also, to his advantage is his father’s good repute amongst the local residents, in terms of how he interacts with them.
Saif Khosa is a Sardar and has a reputation for being inaccessible.
Election activity
None of the senior leadership is on the field campaigning, except PTI’s Zartaj Gul. The majority of the voters vote on the basis of biradari (clan). PTI has a large voter base here, while the PML-N’s voters are almost non-existent in the area, which is why the PML-N did not field a candidate from this constituency in the 2018 election.
PTI’s chairman Imran Khan will address a large gathering on July 5.
Constituency problems
The lack of clean drinking water.
