EC to decide on Pakistan Peoples Party`s election symbol

Islamabad: Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), having completed its five-year term in power recently, seemed to be facing a tussle over its election symbol and ownership, as the country`s Election Commission was to take a decision over it Monday. The need for a reconsideration by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) arose after ousted former party member Naheed Khan, Ghinwa Bhutto, sister-in-law of the late Benazir Bhutto, and Senator Jehangir Badar sought PPP`s registration in their names.

The ECP would take decision about allotment of "arrow" as election symbol and ownership of the Pakistan People Party Monday, Geo News reported Monday. The Election Commission had postponed its decision for allotment of arrow as election symbol to the Pakistan Peoples Party after Khan had also sought the same symbol and Badar had sought time to produce some documents in the ECP. In November 2012, Khan, a critic of President Asif Ali Zardari`s way of handling the PPP, as the the party chief, was suspended from party membership because of her frequent criticism of the leadership. In December 2012, led by Khan and her spouse Safdar Abbasi, a number of estranged PPP workers had announced to launch a movement to liberate the party from "a dictator" who had no regard for the legacy and philosophy of the party founders. Declaring a rebellion against Zardari`s then leadership of the PPP, they expressed confidence in the leadership of Khan, a long time close aide of Benazir Bhutto, former Pakistan prime minister and PPP chief who was assassinated in a bomb attack in December 2007. IANS