Bilawal-led PPP to contest elections with sword symbol after 40 years

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Peoples Party will contest the upcoming general elections with the symbol of the sword after more than 40 years. 

Earlier, PPP’s Secretary General Nayyar Hussain Bukhari had requested the Election Commission of Pakistan to allot party its original electoral symbol of the sword. 

"PPP was formed in 1967. It fought the elections of 1970 with the symbol of the sword. However, after the martial law in 1977 the symbol was removed," he told the ECP.

"In 1987, the symbol of the sword wasn't even present in the list of alloted symbols," he added. "PPP has the right to this electoral symbol as it represents the sword of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto."

After being barred from using the symbol of the sword, the party had eventually taken up the symbol of the arrow, which it is more commonly associated with. 

After hearing the arguments, a five-member committee of the ECP allotted the party spearheaded by Bilawal Bhutto Zardari the symbol of its choice.

Moreover, other major political parties of Pakistan were also allotted the electoral symbol of their own choice for the upcoming general elections. 

The Chief Election Commissioner Justice Sardar Muhammad Raza Khan, who presided over the process of allotting parties and candidates their symbols, remarked that political parties are eligible for all those electoral symbols over which there is no dispute.

During the process, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz was allotted the symbol of the lion, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf allotted bat, Jamaat-e-Islami given scale, PPP Parliamentarians allotted arrow, while Awami National Party and Awami Muslim League received lantern, and pen and inkpot respectively.

The leaders of both factions of Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan, PIB's Farooq Sattar and Bahadurabad's Amir Khan, also appeared before the ECP.

Amir Khan remarked that the electoral symbol of the kite should be allotted to MQM, adding that the difference between two factions has nothing to do with the electoral symbol.

"In our view, there is no dispute in Muttahida Qaumi Movement," said Cheif Election Commission and allotted the party its desired symbol.