For PTI workers, campaign for Imran in NA-1 is mission

Delawar Jan

PESHAWAR: Thousands of workers of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leave homes every morning in Peshawar’s NA-1 constituency to campaign for the party chief Imran Khan, who is in one of the nerve-racking contests with Awami National Party’s Ghulam Ahmad Bilour.

The PTI’s 2,500 Tabdeeli Razakar, according to the party leaders, are taking part in the campaign, going door-to-door to persuade voters to cast ballot in favour of Imran Khan. Besides them, the party leaders are also working hard to ensure he wins election from this important constituency.

“They knock every door, give pamphlets to people and persuade them that Imran Khan is the only leader who can bring change,” said Shaukat Yousafzai, provincial general of the party who is in-charge of the election campaign for Imran Khan. “They ask for vote for Imran Khan,” he said, adding that the campaign had moved into full swing.

Contest in NA-1 is a test for Imran Khan’s hyped popularity and a challenge for Ghulam Bilour, federal minister for Railways in the previous government, to retain his seat. Bilour has won this seat four times since 1988. He could not contest in election in 2002.

Workers of both the parties are making unflagging efforts to win election on the seat. However, ANP’s disadvantage is that its candidate and workers cannot openly and freely run election campaign due to terrorist threats. Ghulam Bilour’s election gathering was attacked by a suicide bomber as this story was being filed, reinforcing the ferocity of the threat to ANP and Bilour. Despite threats of attacks, he and his workers appear determined to persevere the election campaign.

“This is the beginning. The number of the Tabdeeli Razakar will go up in the coming days,” Shaukat said. Not only men activists, but women workers of the party are also participating in canvassing, targetting female voters. According to PTI, women’s wing kicked off electioneering from PK-2, a provincial constituency that is part of NA-1. “We are going to continue campaign in Gulbahar tomorrow to cover more areas,” said Ayesha, a woman campaigner.

The Tabdeeli Razakars (volunteers for change) are also motivating people, particularly youngsters, to come out of homes on May 11 to cast vote. The party says it is following an election campaign strategy that include holding of public gatherings, corner meetings and door-to-door canvassing.   

The party workers staged a rally in Gulbahar on Tuesday as part of the campaign for Imran Khan. The party also held gatherings in other locations near Gulbahar which were addressed by Shaukat Yousafzai. “The youth have come out in support of PTI and now political stalwarts will bite the dust,” he told a gathering in Ganj. To public meetings in Ijazabad, Karimpura and Gulbahar, he said the ANP and its leaders who had won three to four times had disappointed electorate in Peshawar. “This city has been in ruins and does not even indicate that this is the capital of a province,” he told The News, criticising ANP and PPP for failing to carry out development. He said people from the strongholds of PPP and ANP in NA-1 were inviting them for holding public meetings, an indication from PTI’s perspective that people are unhappy with them. “People’s response to the campaign is unprecedented,” Shaukat said.

The main challenge for Imran Khan is to assure the electorate of NA-1 that he would retain the seat, if he won. Shaukat said Imran Khan would decide whether to retain the seat after winning it or not. The PTI is trying to persuade Imran Khan to hold, at least, one public meeting as part of the campaign in Peshawar.

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