Balochistan Assembly: Embarrassment for majority party

QUETTA:

Numerically, the PML-N is the largest party in the Balochistan Assembly. But the numerical strength couldn’t save the party embarrassment as its senior vice president, Sardar Yaqoob Nasir, could not win a seat in Thursday’s Senate elections.

Overall too, the party didn’t fare well. Having support of 28 legislators in the 65-member house, the party could grab only three seats. Interestingly, its smaller coalition partners, the National Party (NP) and Pashtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP), also won three seats each even though they have respectively 11 and 14 MPAs in the provincial legislature.

Sardar Yaqoob Nasir, a PML-N bigwig in Balochistan, has served as minister in federal and provincial cabinets during the party’s previous stints in power. He has also been unbeaten in successive general elections from his constituency in Loralai.

The PML-N and its coalition parties – NP and PkMAP – didn’t form an electoral alliance. The PML-N, on the other hand, had formed an alliance with opposition JUI-F and was expecting six Senate seats from the province as the PML-Q and Majlis Wadatul Muslimeen lawmakers were also on its side. On the polling day, however, fissures were visible in the party’s ranks.

“It was a disaster for the PML-N,” said a senior leader of the ruling coalition. “The PML-N had the support of 28 MPAs and with JUI-F’s eight legislators also on its side the party was in a very good position – but it miserably failed to capitalise on its numerical strength.”

Balochistan Assembly Speaker Jan Muhammad Jamali was the first to go against the party line and vote for his daughter, Sana Jamali. Others followed suit and voted for candidates of their choice – including BNP’s Dr Jahanzeb Jamalidini and independent candidate Yusuf Badini.

A senior government official revealed that many PML-N legislators voted for Badini. “No doubt, some of the members from the treasury benches were up for sale,” the official told The Express Tribune on the condition of anonymity.

The BNP also won one seat even though the party has only two MPAs in the house. “The JUI-F violated an agreement it had made with us before the elections. However, PML-N’s Jan Jamali and one MPA each from NP, ANP and BNP-Awami voted for our candidate Dr Jahanzeb Jamalidini,” BNP chief Sardar Akhtar Mengal told reporters after the elections.

Jamaldini polled six votes and secured more than 700 points. Similarly, Badini secured six votes and won by securing more points.

“Our MPA Fateh Muhammad Buledi did not vote for the party candidates for all four positions,” NP leader Jan Muhammad Buledi confirmed to The Express Tribune. He added that action would be taken against Fateh.

Provincial Election Commissioner Sultan Bayazeed said that all 65 MPAs cast their votes in the elections and there was no complaint of violation of rules or code.

Hasil Bezinjo of the NP bagged 10 votes, the highest votes for a general seat. Similarly, Dr Ashok of the NP secured 36 votes for a minority seat while his rival PML-N’s Danes polled 26 votes. PkMAP’s Gul Bushra secured 24 votes and PML-N’s Kulsom Perven bagged 19 votes, both were elected to the upper house of parliament for the two seats reserved for women. Mir Kabir Muhammed Shai of the NP got 28 votes and won a technocrat seat.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 6^th, 2015.