Punjab by-elections: PTI unveils Imran Khan-led mass contact campaign

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has rolled out the schedule of its mass contact campaign led by chairman Imran Khan, beginning on July 7 to 15 ahead of by-elections on 20 seats of the Punjab Assembly.

PTI Core Committee Member and the head of the Central Media Department (CMD) Dr Iftikhar Durrani announced that the party plan for Imran Khan’s mass contact campaign has been prepared.

“PTI Chairman Imran Khan will address big public gatherings on 16 spots from July 7 to 15. On July 7, the PTI chief will address public meetings in PP-158 constituency of Lahore and PP-140 – Sheikhupura,” said Durrani in a Twitter message.

عوامی رابطے کے حوالے سے چیئرمین تحریک انصاف کا پروگرام تیار :

7 سے 15 جولائی کے درمیان چیئرمین عمران خان 16 مقامات پر بڑے عوامی اجتماعات سے خطاب کریں گے

7 جولائی کو چئیرمین تحریک انصاف لاہور پی پی 158 اور شیخوپورہ پی پی 140 میں جلسوں سے مخاطب ہونگے

#امپورٹڈ_حکومت_نامنظور

— Dr. Iftikhar Durrani (@DuraniIftikhar) July 4, 2022

The upcoming by-polls will be a tough challenge for the formerly ruling and the present opposition party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on the 20 vacant seats of the Punjab Assembly on July 17 against the presently ruling and the formerly opposition party, Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N).

A tough contest is likely to be seen between the two political parties and their allies ahead of Punjab chief minister’s elections on July 22. Both parties will exhibit their full strength to win the upcoming by-polls that will directly impact the Punjab CM elections to have numbers to change the fate of the largest province’s politics.

Number game

At this time, the ruling PML-N with its Chief Minister Hamza Shahbaz has an edge of four more votes until the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) notifies the PTI lawmakers on five reserved seats before the CM’s elections. The ruling PML-N will get a concrete position in the Punjab Assembly if it wins 10 seats to emerge victorious in CM’s elections.

On the other hand, PTI will need to get victorious on 14 seats to possess a winning position in the upcoming CM’s polls. The political party would be having no other option than to divert its attention to the independent candidates if it loses more than six seats.

Keeping morale high

Imran Khan-led PTI has begun the political campaigning for the by-polls with a massive power show in Islamabad’s Parade Ground in which the party chairman recalled its narrative and appealed to the people not to let the turncoats win again on the vacant seats.

The PTI built a strong narrative of ‘foreign conspiracy’ supported by ‘political rivals and turncoats’ against the ‘best-performing government led by former prime minister Imran Khan’ which was collecting ‘economic achievements’ and ‘successful controlling of inflation’.

On the other hand, the ruling PML-N also announced a series of power shows which will be led by its vice-president Maryam Nawaz.

Moreover, Punjab CM Hamza Shahbaz unveiled a financial relief package for Punjab people including ‘free electricity for consumers using 100 units a month’ and vowed to provide solar panels to the needy people in a bid to make a shift to alternative sources of energy.

وزیراعلیٰ پنجاب حمزہ شہباز کا پسماندہ طبقے کے لیے احسن اقدام.100 یونٹس کے بجلی صارفین کیلیے مفت بجلی کی فراہمی کا اعلان#روشن_گھرانہ_پروگرام pic.twitter.com/fezHkeR00X

— PML(N) (@pmln_org) July 4, 2022

The power shows of Maryam Nawaz began on Saturday with a public gathering in Lahore’s PP-167 constituency, PP-158 on Sunday and PP-170 on Monday.

Political analysts said that the financial relief package announced by Punjab CM Hamza Shahbaz was definitely not convincing and much attractive for the people who are not only facing power outages but their buying power shrinking due to the latest wave of inflation in terms of recent hikes in fuel prices, essential commodities and the devaluation of rupee against US dollar.

They added that the ruling party which is having the support of several allies is still failing in almost all sectors as compared to the PTI government, primarily on the economic front and then on political grounds besides failing to end the political and constitutional crises in the largest province of Punjab.