The ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) hasn’t announced its nominees for the upcoming Senate elections in March, but many of the party leaders, among them prime minister’s special aides, are vying for the Senate tickets.

With the elections round the corner, the PTI believes it’s in a comfortable spot to undo the opposition majority in the upper house of parliament, and PM Imran Khan is confident that the post-polls Senate would be dominated by the government and its allied parties.

Media reports say that PM’s Special Assistant on Accountability Shahzad Akbar, SAPM Zulfi Bukhari, party’s chief organiser Saifullah Niazi, Ejaz Chaudhry, Dr Zarqa Soharwardi and Tanzeela Imran among others are among the aspirants for Senate.

Sources also claimed that Firdous Ashiq Awan, special assistant to CM Usman Buzdar, will be a nominee for the Senate seat.

However, these names have yet to be finalised after a committee to choose the Senate nominees is established and the PM Imran Khan finalises the list and makes it public.  

If Senate elections are to be held in March’s first week, then the party must choose its candidates and finalise the strategy by mid-February, reports quoted the party leaders as saying.

BRING TAREEN BACK:

Recently, PTI lawmaker Raja Riaz had asked the prime minister to make estranged PTI leader Jahangir Khan Tareen the chairman of the committee formed to choose the candidates for the Senate elections.

During a parliamentary party meeting on Wednesday with PM Imran Khan in the chair, the PTI lawmaker, who hails from Faisalabad, had said that Tareen’s services for the PTI cannot be ignored and demanded that the senior leader be made the head of the committee.

He had also asked the PM to include Punjab Governor Chaudhry Sarwar, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Amir Kiyani, and Ijaz Chaudhry in the body formed to choose Senate candidates.