ANP’s first female candidate from Punjab is breaking stereotypes

A candidate running from National Assembly constituency NA-155 Multan is different from the other contenders in many aspects.

Nosheen Khan Jatoi is Awami National Party's first women candidate in Punjab, who is contesting on a general seat.

A lawyer by profession, Nosheen is also running her campaign in an interesting way.

She rides a motorcycle to interact with constituents in order to garner their support. The candidate is going door-to-door conveying her party's message.

“Since I was a little kid, I would look at the conditions of the people around me and wonder what I can do for them,” Nosheen remarked while speaking to Geo.tv.

In order to help people, she pursued a degree in law. However, she soon realised that she wasn’t being able to reach out to as many people as she wanted. Then, she opened a non-governmental organisation, Niharki Welfare Organisation, which offers vocational training, educates people about law, and operates dispensaries at different places.

With time, Nosheen, who hails from Jatoi district of Muzaffargarh, realised that she can only achieve her goals was by becoming a parliament.

Stressing education

When asked about the biggest challenge facing Pakistan, the middle child among three sisters and four brothers pointed out that it was the dearth of education.

“I don’t want to focus on educating children but adults as well.”

People must be educated to be socially aware and know the difference between good and bad, she said, adding “it is of crucial importance for women to know about their rights”

Whether she wins or loses, Nosheen knows that her journey is far from over. Despite degrees in law and English language, she is currently completing her MPhil in English Literature from the University of Central Punjab.

Empowering women

Questioned how tough was it to lead an election campaign, the ANP hopeful said that being a woman in Pakistan was tough in itself during her appearance on Geo News.

She further remarked that women seek female lawyers to represent them so that they could easily share their issues with them. "Only a woman can understand another woman's problem and deal with it in a better way."

"Apart from that, I thought of contesting the election because I thought that there [in legal profession] I have already been working, but I have so far been unable to do what I want to," the ANP candidate said.

"This is why I stood in the election, availed ANP's ticket and thankfully I am running for the seat from their panel."