MIRPUR: Thirteen candidates will stand in the by-election for the Azad Jammu Kashmir Legislative Assembly seat that was vacated by Barrister Sultan Mahmood Choudhry after he was elected as the President.
The by-poll for the LA-3 Mirpur-III constituency is scheduled to be held on October 10. Polls will also be held for another seat, the LA 12 Kotli-V, which fell vacant due to the resignation of Chaudhry Muhammad Yasin from one of the two seats he won in the July 25 election.
In addition to independents, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP) and Jamaat-e-Islami have named their candidates who have begun their campaigns for the scheduled by-polls.
Yasir Sultan, the son of the newly elected AJK President, is the nominee of the PTI for LA-3, Mirpur-III constituency. The PML-N’s Chaudhry Muhammad Saeed is standing in this constituency as well.
Similarly, former mayor and former adviser to the AJK government Chaudhry Ashraf and Umair Chaudhry of the TLP have filed nomination papers for the same constituency.
Nomination papers were filed before the returning officer on September 13th. The list of valid candidates was published the next day. Appeals against the acceptance or rejection of nomination papers could be filed before the election commission on September 18th.
The election commission will hear appeals on September 20th while the decisions will be announced on September 22nd. Candidates can withdraw their nomination papers on September 23rd before 2pm local time.
Symbols will be allotted to the candidates on September 24th and final lists of the candidates will be published the same day.