GDA believes PTI betrayed in Sindh

The Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) has expressed grievances over the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmakers in the Sindh Assembly allegedly not voting for its candidate, Syed Sadaruddin Shah Rashdi, in the recent Senate election, and sent a letter to the prime minister in this regard.

Speaking to the media outside the provincial assembly on Friday, GDA MPAs revealed that they had written a letter to the prime minister, in which they had listed PTI MPAs in the Sindh Assembly who did not vote for Rashdi.

"Before the Senate election, different alliances of the opposition MPAs [in Sindh] were formed to support each other's candidates," said GDA leader Hasnain Mirza, adding that 14 GDA MPAs had voted for the PTI and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) candidates on seats reserved for women and technocrats, but none of the PTI lawmakers supported Rashdi.

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Mirza added that "Besides 14 votes of GDA MPAs, Rashdi needed seven more votes to get elected on a general seat and as per the consensus reached with the PTI, its lawmakers were supposed to vote for the GDA candidate, but none of them did so."

"We have now sent the names of the PTI lawmakers who did not vote for Rashdi to the prime minister and urged him to investigate into the matter and take action over it," he said.

Calling to mind that the Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah had said before the election that the Pakistan Peoples Party would sweep the Senate poll in Sindh, he maintained it would have happened had the GDA not supported PTI and MQM-P candidates.

"It was our party that was the stumbling block in the way of the PPP bagging all seats," he said.

GDA leader Shaharyar Mahar said, "The prime minister and his team have demanded a probe into the Islamabad seat. We request that a proper inquiry must also be conducted here, in Sindh, to determine how PTI lawmakers voted and who benefitted from their votes."

Responding to a question, GDA leader Nand Kumar Goklani said the GDA held a firm stance on Sindh's issues, including water, dams and resisting the Pakistan Islands Development Authority.

"This might have irked PTI members who did not vote for Rashdi, who polled just 15 votes," said Goklani.

Despite being asked multiple times, GDA members did not reveal the full content of their letter to the prime minister. However, GDA MPA Abdul Razzaque Rahimoon said PTI MPAs Bilal Ghaffar, Karim Baloch, Omar Omari, Muhammad Abbas Jafri, Rabistan Khan, Mohammad Shabir and Dewan Sachal were supposed to vote for Rashdi.

Sources privy to the matter told The Express Tribune on the condition of anonymity that GDA MPAs in the Sindh Assembly had also suggested to the GDA head Pir Pagara to part ways with the PTI.

Read more: Protesters barred from reaching PA

A member of the GDA, who asked not to be named, told The Express Tribune that his party was mulling the possibility of "saying goodbye" to the PTI, which had given the GDA just one federal ministry.

"Majority of Sindh Assembly members and senior leaders of our party are unhappy with the recent move in the Senate election. Pir Pagara has asked us to wait for a while," the source said, adding that as a first move the GDA would try to remove Haleem Adil Sheikh as the opposition leader.

This, they claimed, was discussed with the MQM-P on Friday, and added that the MQM-P had sought time to discuss the matter with its Rabita Committee.