Leaked audios: After Kamal, Tessori admits MQM-P’s poll ‘setback’

Our situation is going to be even worse if we join govt, Sindh governor can be heard as saying

Following the recent revelation of a leaked audio featuring Mustafa Kamal, another audio surfaced on Wednesday, this time involving Sindh Governor and Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) leader Kamran Tessori. In the recording, Tessori purportedly admits that the party did not secure the expected votes in the 2024 elections.

In the leaked audio, Tessori can be heard expressing concern about the party’s position if they were to join the government, stating, “Our situation is going to be even worse. We did not get votes in the elections.” He highlighted the 2024 results in contrast with the 2018 elections when MQM-P secured seven seats, which was considered their actual vote bank.

Tessori went on to reveal the party’s past alliance with PTI, expressing that joining the upcoming government would be detrimental to the party’s standing in the populace. He disclosed that the MQM-P’s support for the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), a coalition mainly consisting of PPP and PML-N, angered their voters.

“If we join the government, then our situation is going to be worse,” Tessori lamented in the purported audio. He added, “they are bringing in a Sindh governor of their own… in return for joining the government, they are only giving us the Ministry of Science and Technology.”

This revelation comes on the heels of another audio leak featuring MQM-P leader Mustafa Kamal, where discussions about a potential coalition government with PML-N were detailed. Kamal described an uncooperative attitude from PML-N during negotiations, alleging that PPP accused MQM-P of a completely fraudulent mandate.

Read Leaked audios stir controversy: After Kamal, Tessori admits MQM-P's poll ‘setback’

Responding to the leaked audio, Mustafa Kamal released a video statement acknowledging its authenticity.

JI’s reaction

Meanwhile, Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Karachi chief Hafiz Naeemur Rehman, has reacted to the audio leaks, urging Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori to present the real facts regarding election irregularities. He called for annulling the ‘fake’ results of Form-47 and declaring accurate results as per Form-45.

Rehman emphasised that MQM-P’s victory was questioned even before the elections, alleging pre-election rigging and the imposition of rejected parties through ‘fake’ Form-47 results. He called for the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to take action based on the revelations made in the leaked audios.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 29^th, 2024.