Though on political scene speculations are about delay in polls, political and religious parties are out approaching each other not only to have seat-to-seat adjustments or electoral alliance in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, but also to mobilize their workers.However, seeing the rapidly changing political environment, no political party is showing much enthusiasm in carrying out public meetings prior to the elections that are expected to take place in the first week of May this year. Different reasons are cited for slow electioneering. First, the government has yet to decide the date for holding elections; secondly, there is poor law and order situation in the country.As compared to other parties, the ruling ANP, for having a tough stance on militancy, will obviously face hardships in electioneering. Being well aware of the consequences, ANP is constantly arranging its public meetings, most of them at Nishtar Hall just for security reasons.The ANP leadership says from time to time that it will gear up its political activities once the election date is announced. The JUI-F, JI, PPP, PTI, QWP and PML-N are not too much behind in the race of attracting voters and are busy in various political engagements. To a great extent, these parties have already finalised names of contenders for the national and provincial assemblies.Moreover, JUI-F, JI and ANP have even authorised its district-based party office bearers to make seat adjustments at district level, so the coming elections will be different from the previous ones. In one district, a party will be opposing one party while the same party may be backing it in another district.To take important decisions about the coming general elections, a two-day meeting of JUI-F’s Central Executive Council (CEC) will be held in Lahore on February 23 and February 24. JUI-F Chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman will preside over the CEC meeting which will also be attended by its members from all the four provinces. The CEC will discuss in detail different options like seat-to-seat adjustments and alliance with other parties in the coming polls.To evolve a joint strategy on terrorism, ANP is all set to call an all parties conference (APC) in Islamabad this month. So far, its leadership has met top brass of political and religious parties so as to take them on board. Maulana Fazlur Rehman has put a condition that it will attend the APC if all the affairs are run by an All Tribal Grand Jirga which the JUI-F has already formed.Today, there is a crushing need to restore peace to KPK and political and religious parties can play a vital role. For this purpose, they must be on one page as it will be hard enough to run the election campaign without peace, political observers say. They are giving too much importance to a clear change in ANP’s stance on militancy. The ANP is now willing to talk to militants even if they do not give up arms.PPP KPK President Anwar Saifullah has mobilised the party by holding a number of public meetings and a number of new faces have joined it. However, having been in coalition government for about five years in KPK, Anwar Saifullah time and again has announced that his party will not make any seat adjustment or electoral alliance with ANP. On the other hand, ANP says it won 2008 elections without any seat-to-seat adjustment or alliance with PPP and it will prefer the same position in the coming polls. Having 33 percent popularity graph, the PTI has emerged as a major political force in the province, says an international organisation, putting PML-N and PPP behind. The PTI, however, faced an ugly situation when various groups within the party clashed with one another during the intra-party polls some days back. The much-awaited intra-party elections of the party were postponed in Peshawar, Mardan and other districts as clashes erupted between old workers and new entrants. The intra-party elections of PTI in Peshawar district and its five cantonment towns were postponed indefinitely when two groups of workers clashed over the alleged rigging at Swan Restaurant in Hayatabad, Township, where the polls were being held. Eyewitnesses say supporters of one group resorted to firing in the air when their rivals objected to their alleged rigging. Resultantly, the election commissioner declared the results null and void. The PML-N is also actively organising its public meeting in the province. Some days back, an ex-lawmaker of QWP, Nasreen Khattak, formally joined the party in the presence of Pir Sabir Shah, provincial president of N-League. Nasreen Khattak was elected on a reserve seat in 2002 on the then PPP-Sherpao ticket and remained an MPA for about five years.Led by Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao, Qaumi Watan Party (QWP) is frequently organising public gatherings, mostly in Peshawar, Charsadda, Mardan, Swabi and Swat as his party is now trying its level best to emerge as a Pakhtun nationalist party. In the last by-polls, it regained its seat which had fallen vacant after the death of its MPA in Charsadda.Strongly opposing the proposal to include district Mianwali in the proposed Bahawalpur Janoobi Punjab province, Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) has rejected the notion, saying it will resist any such move. It views that historically districts Attock and Mianwali belong to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Any plan to declare Mianwali as part of the proposed new province will not be acceptable to the PkMAP and it will oppose it at each and every forum.JI Amir Syed Munawar Hassan frequently visits Peshawar and other parts of the province and addresses public meetings, strongly criticizing the ruling clique and calls for timely elections. However, JI hast yet to decide on alliance with PML-N or PTI. So its workers are not clear about the future scenario and the party leadership is keenly watching each and every development on the political horizon. JI will approach its workers when the situation becomes clear. Talking to media persons a day back, Munawar Hassan said his party would resist any move to derail democracy and delay the coming elections. In KPK, PML-Q is seen nowhere as it leadership is neither holding party meetings nor has it any plan in near future to visit the province, so its workers are leaving the party and switching to other parties.