Dozens of PTI UC chairmen announced on Monday not to vote for JI’s candidate Hafiz Naeemur Rehman in the Karachi mayor elections scheduled for June 15.

They told Aaj News that the party leadership took the decision of endorsing Rehman without consulting them. PTI UC chairmen would remain absent on the voting day, they added.

UC chairmen said that they knew the ground realities in Karachi and that the LG representatives have the right to make decisions independently.

PPP’s Murtaza Wahab and JI’s Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman are contesting the Karachi mayor’s election.

PPP is leading with 155 seats in the city council, followed by JI securing 130 seats while PTI remained the third with 62 seats secured.

The total number of seats in the city council is 371 and the number required to win the mayor’s office is 186 members of the house.

PTI UC chairmen’s decision to not take part in the election is likely to create a challenge for Rehman to secure the coveted seat. Earlier, PTI’s chief Imran Khan had announced to unconditionally support JI’s candidate for Karachi mayor after the LG polls.

Read more: https://www.aajenglish.tv/news/30301323/sindhs-local-government-is-a-bastardized-british-colonial-french-model)

The election for 235 UC chairpersons took place on January 15, but it was postponed in 11 UCs after some of the candidates passed away after submitting their nomination papers.

On May 7, polling began for by-elections in 11 Union Councils of Karachi where candidates from major political parties contested the by-poll.

The PPP grabbed seven out of 11 seats in by-elections in Karachi’s 11 Union Committees. The JI won four seats.

The local body election was originally supposed to take place in July 2022 but it was rescheduled multiple times due to floods and worries over outbreaks of violence.

The Sindh Government on June 2, announced that the new Karachi mayor will be elected through a show of hand.

JI’s Hafiz Naeemur Rehman has been continuously accusing the PPP of ‘using undemocratic means’ to bring in its city mayor without having a majority in the city council.

JI held Tahafuz-e-Karachi march on Sunday to protest against the alleged unconstitutional and undemocratic tactics of the provincial government ahead of the mayoral elections.