DERA GHAZI KHAN: Nine candidates are in the run for PP-288 by-election scheduled for July 17 with Tumandar Khosa f amily`s Saifuddin Khosa of the PTI and Abdul Qadir Khosa of the PML-N front runners.

Saifuddin Khosa is the son of tribal chief Zulfiqar Ali Khan Khosa while his main rival, Abdul Qadir Khosa, is the son of PTI MNA Amjad Farooq Khosa.

Amjad Farooq is a cousin of Zulfikar Khosa, a former governor of Punjab and once a PML-N stalwart.

The PP-288 consists of DG Khan`s rural areas as well as part of the tribal area.

The law and order situation of the constituency is bad as Ladi gang operates here at will. Listed as PP-243 before delimitation, the seat was won by Mohsin AttaKhosa of the PML-N in 2013 elections. In the 2018 vote, Atta contested as independent and won the election with 39,396 votes, defeating Saifuddin Khan Khosa who polled 30,132 votes. Later, Mohsin Atta Khosa joined the PTI.

At the time of no-confidence move against chief minister Usman Buzdar, Mohsin Atta Khosa voted in favour of Hamza and was subsequently de-seated.

At present, Mohsin Atta Khosa and MNA Amjad Farooq Khosa are backing PML-N candidate and former district chairman Abdul Q adir Khosa.

Tribal elder of Leghari tribe Awais Ahmed Khan Leghari, after resigning from the provincial cabinet, is also campaigning for the PML-N nominee beside PPP and other parties of the PDM.

PTI chief Imran Khan in scheduled to address a public meeting in the constituency on Thursday (today).