Dera Ghazi Khan district has seen many local feudals come to the political fore over the decades, including former president Sardar Farooq Leghari, former Punjab governor Sardar Latif Khosa and most recently, former Punjab chief minister Sardar Usman Buzdar.

However, the title of 'sardar' preceding the names of all these figures is merely a means to achieve personal and political gains in the field, as none have actually used their offices to benefit their own home district. They have only used their title to show up in their areas and garner the support of the local community at the time of every election, but later never looked back to actually help the people who brought them to power.

In the lead-up to the upcoming general elections, the district of Dera Ghazi Khan is also witnessing a flurry of political activity, with a total of 66 candidates filing their nomination papers for the three National Assembly seats. As per the data issued by District Election Commissioner Imtiaz Ahmed, 64 men and two women are in the running from the district.

National Assembly Seat Breakdown

A total of 66 candidates have submitted their nomination papers for the three seats of the National Assembly falling in Dera Ghazi Khan district.

NA-184 (Dera Ghazi Khan-I): 16 male candidates have submitted nomination papers.
NA-185: A crowded field with 25 male and 2 female candidates.
NA-186 (Dera Ghazi Khan-III): A newly-created constituency attracting 23 male candidates.

Punjab Assembly seats

Meanwhile, 21 candidates are contesting for the PP-286 provincial assembly seat from Dera Ghazi Khan, 16 for PP-287, 40 for PP-288, 39 for PP-289, 32 for PP-290 and 27 for PP-291. These include 165 men and 10 women.

Taunsa district

In the newly created Taunsa district, which was carved out of Dera Ghazi Khan, 21 candidates have filed their nomination papers for the lone NA-183 seat, while 41 nominees have filed their documents for two provisional assembly seats, PP-284 and PP-285.

Candidates in the Race

For Taunsa’s NA-183, Sardar Amjad Farooq Khosa of the PML-N, PTI’s Khawaja Sheraz Mahmood and independent candidate Mir Badshah Qaisarani are in the running.
For NA-184, the PML-N has fielded Abdul Qadir Khan Khosa, PTI has Saiduddin Khan Khosa in the running, and an independent candidate, Zulfiqar Khan Khosa.
For NA-185, the PTI’s Zartaj Gul will be vying for the seat against the PPP’s Sardar Dost Muhammad Khan Khosa, while the PML-N has yet to field a candidate for this constituency.
For NA-186, the PML-N’s Sardar Awais Khan Leghari will be up against the PTI’s Moinuddin Khan Khosa and PPP’s Sardar Shehryar Talpur.

Flashback to 2018 General Elections

In the 2018 general election, DG Khan comprised four National and eight provisional assembly seats. The parties that contested for these were Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN), Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and a few other popular parties as well as independent candidates.

NA Winner Party

NA-189 Khawaja Sheraz Mehmood PTI

NA-190 Muhammad Amjad Farooq Khan Khosa IND

NA-191 Zartaj Gul PTI

NA-192 Sardar Muhammad Khan Leghari PTI

Issues in the District

The under-developed district of DG Khan is plagued by several problems, all of which remain unresolved to date, as no elected representative has prioritised them despite making tall claims to do so during their successive election campaigns.

The basic problem faced by the people of DG Khan is lack of pure water supply. Every year, viral hepatitis causes a number of deaths due to both liver inflammation and damage, making it an alarming health problem in the district.

Road and infrastructure. The situation of road infrastructure in district is deplorable to say the least. Representatives from every successful party from the district in the past has made promised to develop the roads, yet these claims remain unfulfilled.

Education. The district consists of the sole Ghazi University. It urgently requires more government and private universities as well as the promotion of primary education for girls.