Post-Mirza alignments: As MQM eyes Badin seat, political landscape takes a shift
Former home minister focuses on Sindh vote, Arbab even eyeing a comeback.
KARACHI:
The Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) has decided to take on Zulfiqar Mirza’s turf by fielding a candidate from Badin in the next elections. This is the party’s answer to Mirza’s frequently televised ire directed at the MQM: We will compete at the ballot box.
“We will have a stronger political role there now,” said MQM leader Dr Farooq Sattar said while talking to The Express Tribune in an interview at the party’s Karachi office.
Thus, while the past few weeks have been nothing short of a public relations disaster for the MQM, the party has decided to move forward instead of being embroiled in a war of words with the former Sindh home minister.
Sattar declined to name a candidate for now. Badin is, after all, not a MQM stronghold by any standards. It has not concentrated on the constituency before and barely managed to garner any votes from the area in previous elections.
But with this move, the MQM is looking to make up for the months it has concentrated solely on Karachi. With the party back in the federal government, it has time to focus on what Sattar describes as its ‘national fight’.
This time, rejoining the coalition has been backed with stronger assurances from President Asif Ali Zardari than in past negotiations. The party has been promised more involvement and control over law and order and infrastructure development in Karachi, Sukkur, Hyderabad, Mirpurkhas and Nawabshah, and that it will be consulted on important decisions.
After months of inactivity, MQM head Altaf Hussain addressed workers in Lahore via telephone on Sunday, staying largely on message as compared to his rambling press conference directed at Karachi in September. Hussain said the party would contest the by-elections if the Punjab Assembly was dissolved.
“We’ve held a well-attended rally in Dera Ismail Khan and in Parachinar as well,” Sattar said. “We plan to work in southern Punjab too.”
The MQM has previously contested elections in Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan.
However, it appears unlikely that the party can make any significant gains in Punjab. Instead, observers are expecting the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf to dent the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz vote bank in Punjab.
Meanwhile in Sindh, Zulfiqar Mirza is working towards consolidating the Sindh vote bank for the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP). He is currently supported by about a dozen Members of the Provincial Assembly (MPAs). After weeks of railing against the MQM, Mirza’s focus is now opposing the local government system, which the MQM wants restored and has been a sore point in MQM-PPP negotiations.
Former Sindh chief minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid like-minded group leader Arbab Ghulam Rahim has also made some moves to re-enter active politics. Rahim, and three MPAs supporting him, submitted an application to Sindh Assembly Speaker Nisar Khuhro last week to nominate Rahim as the leader of the opposition.
However, according to group member MPA Chettan Mal Arwani, “We have heard that the speaker said that he will not let Rahim be leader of the opposition until the case between the PML-Q and its forward bloc members is resolved. We will be meeting with him on Tuesday to discuss the issue.”
Arwani told The Express Tribune, “Arbab saheb is waiting to come back. If this move is approved, he’ll be here in two weeks.”
Arwani said Rahim has not been approached by the PPP or MQM so far and will continue to lead the group of MPAs, which also includes Abdul Razzaque Rahimoon, Arbab Zulfiqar Ali and Nuzhat Pathan.
How Badin votes
In the 2008 general elections, Dr Zulfiqar Mirza won his provincial assembly seat (PS-57) with 33,111 votes. His closest competitor was the incumbent PML-Q candidate Syed Ali Bux Shah, who had 13,853 votes. The MQM candidate had 10 votes. In 2002, Shah won the seat with 30,045 votes.
Mirza’s wife Dr Fehmida Mirza has won the National Assembly seat (NA-225) from Badin in 1997, 2002 and 2008.
SOURCE: ELECTION COMMISSION OF PAKISTAN
Mirza names son for Badin seat
BADIN. Former home minister of Sindh, Dr Zulfiqar Mirza, has nominated his son, Hasnain Mirza, to his seat, PS-57, which opened up after he resigned from it in August. According to the schedule of the Election Commission, nomination papers will be submitted on October 26 and 27. The final list of candidates will be released on November 18 and polling on constituency 57 will be held on December 11. The Election Commission is likely to receive the paperwork in the next two days.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 18th, 2011.
The Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) has decided to take on Zulfiqar Mirza’s turf by fielding a candidate from Badin in the next elections. This is the party’s answer to Mirza’s frequently televised ire directed at the MQM: We will compete at the ballot box.
“We will have a stronger political role there now,” said MQM leader Dr Farooq Sattar said while talking to The Express Tribune in an interview at the party’s Karachi office.
Thus, while the past few weeks have been nothing short of a public relations disaster for the MQM, the party has decided to move forward instead of being embroiled in a war of words with the former Sindh home minister.
Sattar declined to name a candidate for now. Badin is, after all, not a MQM stronghold by any standards. It has not concentrated on the constituency before and barely managed to garner any votes from the area in previous elections.
But with this move, the MQM is looking to make up for the months it has concentrated solely on Karachi. With the party back in the federal government, it has time to focus on what Sattar describes as its ‘national fight’.
This time, rejoining the coalition has been backed with stronger assurances from President Asif Ali Zardari than in past negotiations. The party has been promised more involvement and control over law and order and infrastructure development in Karachi, Sukkur, Hyderabad, Mirpurkhas and Nawabshah, and that it will be consulted on important decisions.
After months of inactivity, MQM head Altaf Hussain addressed workers in Lahore via telephone on Sunday, staying largely on message as compared to his rambling press conference directed at Karachi in September. Hussain said the party would contest the by-elections if the Punjab Assembly was dissolved.
“We’ve held a well-attended rally in Dera Ismail Khan and in Parachinar as well,” Sattar said. “We plan to work in southern Punjab too.”
The MQM has previously contested elections in Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan.
However, it appears unlikely that the party can make any significant gains in Punjab. Instead, observers are expecting the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf to dent the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz vote bank in Punjab.
Meanwhile in Sindh, Zulfiqar Mirza is working towards consolidating the Sindh vote bank for the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP). He is currently supported by about a dozen Members of the Provincial Assembly (MPAs). After weeks of railing against the MQM, Mirza’s focus is now opposing the local government system, which the MQM wants restored and has been a sore point in MQM-PPP negotiations.
Former Sindh chief minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid like-minded group leader Arbab Ghulam Rahim has also made some moves to re-enter active politics. Rahim, and three MPAs supporting him, submitted an application to Sindh Assembly Speaker Nisar Khuhro last week to nominate Rahim as the leader of the opposition.
However, according to group member MPA Chettan Mal Arwani, “We have heard that the speaker said that he will not let Rahim be leader of the opposition until the case between the PML-Q and its forward bloc members is resolved. We will be meeting with him on Tuesday to discuss the issue.”
Arwani told The Express Tribune, “Arbab saheb is waiting to come back. If this move is approved, he’ll be here in two weeks.”
Arwani said Rahim has not been approached by the PPP or MQM so far and will continue to lead the group of MPAs, which also includes Abdul Razzaque Rahimoon, Arbab Zulfiqar Ali and Nuzhat Pathan.
How Badin votes
In the 2008 general elections, Dr Zulfiqar Mirza won his provincial assembly seat (PS-57) with 33,111 votes. His closest competitor was the incumbent PML-Q candidate Syed Ali Bux Shah, who had 13,853 votes. The MQM candidate had 10 votes. In 2002, Shah won the seat with 30,045 votes.
Mirza’s wife Dr Fehmida Mirza has won the National Assembly seat (NA-225) from Badin in 1997, 2002 and 2008.
SOURCE: ELECTION COMMISSION OF PAKISTAN
Mirza names son for Badin seat
BADIN. Former home minister of Sindh, Dr Zulfiqar Mirza, has nominated his son, Hasnain Mirza, to his seat, PS-57, which opened up after he resigned from it in August. According to the schedule of the Election Commission, nomination papers will be submitted on October 26 and 27. The final list of candidates will be released on November 18 and polling on constituency 57 will be held on December 11. The Election Commission is likely to receive the paperwork in the next two days.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 18th, 2011.