PHOTO: APP
The Senate is expected to take up the constituencies’ delimitation bill coming Monday.
Some political circles believe that the PPP’s reluctance to support the PML-N government in securing the desired two-third majority to bring a constitutional amendment in the upper house on constituencies’ delimitation in light of the census 2017 has much to do with its efforts to secure seats in the Senate.
Draft for delimitation of constituencies finalised by house leadership
In this context, sources in the ruling camp believe that the PPP wants to pressure the government into striking a deal to secure some seats in the Senate elections scheduled for March next year.
The PML-N is in a comfortable position to secure all the seats from Punjab’s quota in the upper house in the Senate polls based on the ruling party’s overwhelming strength in the provincial assembly, while the PPP reportedly seeks N-league’s cooperation to win a few seats from the provincial quota in the upper house.
Other reports suggest that PPP supremo Asif Ali Zardari wants the elevation of his sister Faryal Talpur as the next Senate chairperson with support of the PML-N.
On the other hand, some quarters in the ruling camp argue that PPP’s opposition to constituencies’ delimitation bill, despite previously agreeing to the proposed legislation, aims at securing some seats from southern Punjab in the next general elections. Zardari’s party has relatively better support base in southern Punjab, as compared to the rest of the province where the PPP is reduced to having a ‘skeleton’ presence.
“To make a solid political footprint in Punjab is not possible without the support of the PML-N. This is the right time for a political bargaining,” a senator said, requesting anonymity.
He said Zardari’s move to arrange a public gathering in Islamabad and travel to Lahore to come together with Dr Tahirul Qadri against the Punjab government is part of the plan to apply pressure on the government.
“Isn’t it strange that after nearly three years, he [Zardari] has woken up to realise that injustice was meted out to Qadri’s activists who were brutally killed by the Punjab police in the Model Town carnage and that the PPP would join Pakistan Awami Tehreek in its quest for justice? These are all pressure tactics,” the senator added.
Zardari has even gone to the extent of demanding resignation of Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif for the Model Town debacle.
When approached, PPP bigwig and Leader of the Opposition in NA Khursheed Shah said the PPP demanded removal of the Punjab CM after Justice Baqar Najafi’s report into the Model Town debacle surfaced.
The report, according to him, holds the CM and Law Minister Rana Sanaullah responsible for the incident. “This has nothing to do with politics or any kind of deal. It’s our principled position. Dr Tahirul Qadri’s stance has been validated by the inquiry report and we have no reason not to support him,” he told The Express Tribune.
Rejecting the possibility of a deal between the PPP and PML-N, a senior PML-N leader said the ruling party’s chief Nawaz Sharif was too inflexible to be forced into any such deal.
“Punjab is our political bastion, the hub of our support base. And allowing the PPP to secure some seats in that province would be tantamount to allowing them to make inroads into our political terrain at the cost of denting us. Our leadership is never going to approve it. And, by the way, what’s the guarantee that if any deal takes place, it would be honoured?”
He said the Sindh government believes the reported commitments Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi made in the meeting of Council of Common Interests (CCI) last month—regarding payment of outstanding funds to provinces and that of PPP lawmakers in NA from PM’s discretionary quota— were not honoured which is the reason why PPP has been acting aggressively against the PML-N government.
The Sindh and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa governments opposed the proposed legislation on delimitation of constituencies while taking the apparent stance that a significant number of population in the two provinces was ignored in the census and demanded of the prime minister to convene the CCI meeting to discuss the issue.
Delimitation bill: Abbasi tasked with wooing opposition
During the said meeting held last month, the PM reportedly assured Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah and K-P Chief Minister Pervez Khattak that their reservations would be addressed. Following consensus, the related bill on constituencies’ delimitation was passed by NA and now awaits Senate’s nod.
Political analyst and former Election Commission of Pakistan secretary Kanwar Dilshad said the Senate’s session to take up constituencies’ delimitation bill was originally scheduled for December 18, but now it has been rescheduled for December 11 because “something is fishy”.
“I think some sort of agreement must have been reached between the PML-N and PPP which is why the Senate session has been summoned earlier. This wouldn’t have been possible in case of a deadlock. Some kind of ‘give and take’ must be taking place.”
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