Nawaz Sharif’s sleepless nights
PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif assembled the inner circle and asked them to get in touch with the heavyweights that have been on the sidelines since the 2008 elections. People like Rana Nazir from Gujranwala, Rana Tanvir from Sheikhupura, the Raja brothers from Jhelum, Saad Rafiq, Ayaz Amir and Zahid Hamid, among others kept out of the decision-making loop. All these MNAs swear allegiance to the party and Nawaz Sharif, for now. Most of them belong to the so called ‘N-belt’ which runs through central and northern Punjab. This is the area Nawaz Sharif is worried about and has, according to party insiders, asked his inner circle to work on.
The prospect of losing key figures to Imran Khan from this region must be giving the PML-N leadership sleepless nights. Their support in Kasur, Lahore, Sialkot and Sheikhupura forms a strong pillar for the party’s foundation. Any signs of cracks here and it may tear apart at the seams. Unfortunately for the PML-N, the members of the core committee formed by the party president to firm up support among sidelined MNAs are hated by the same MNAs.
Imran Khan and his Tehreek-i-Insaf, meanwhile, continue to gain momentum. PTI leaders say Khan will push hard for the middle-class, urban central and northern Punjab constituencies that were swept by the PML-N in the last general elections. He will be helped by the incumbency factor clearly working against the PML-N in Punjab. Khan has thrown down the gauntlet and now it’s Sharif’s to pick up. Back in the assembly cafeteria, the discussion moved to Khan’s Karachi show. One prominent PML-N MPA from Lahore said that there were visible signs of concern within the top leadership and in the rank and file. He agreed that Hashmi would not be the last defector from the party. The only way for the PML-N to salvage something from the elections, he said, would be if they were held early. Khan, he felt, still needs time to build support and win votes. Time is of the essence here.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 28th, 2011.
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Habib Jalib was a great Urdu-speaking revolutionary poet based in Karachi and affiliated with Imroz Karachi. He was a staunch democrat and his verses are an asset for the democratic and depressed forces. He must be turning violently in his grave, when Shahbaz Sharif recites his verses in the public meeting and tries to prove himself an ardent democrat with revolutionary streak. Raiwind Palatial estate is in stark contrast of what Habib Jalib wrote and what Shahbaz Sharif tries to recite. Khadim-e-Ala, a funny name he has given to himself, cannot even make his people check the examination papers right, and he talks about the revolution. For a change, he should spend a day in the Rawalpindi Board, but he seems to consider Lahore, the whole of Punjab. The Lahore, which has been snatched from him by the PTI. His elder brother is another bonze out of Japan. He also is desperate to bring revolution in the lives of poor. After eating Pai, Chanay, Halwa in breakfast, Nihari and Karachi in lunch, and Pulao, Zarda, roast in dinner in tons of quantity Baray Mian’s brain masala can only think of one word, and that is a revolution for the poor. For him perhaps poor are also some food item.
Mian Sahib Jave Hashmi was your biggest asset and what you did to him was shameful at the very least. He can potentially tear PML-N apart and after the teratment he recieved from you no onw will blame him. except Rana Sanaullah ofcourse.