Toba Tek Singh district: Biradari politics makes a comeback as parties abandon strongholds

Pakistan Peoples Party has not fielded any candidates from the district.

TOBA TEK SINGH:

Toba Tek Singh has been gripped with election fever. The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has been facing tough competition from Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf’s Chaudhary Muhammad Ashfaq who is also supported by PTI Punjab organiser Chaudhary Muhammad Sarwar of Pir Mehal and PTI human rights cell chief Riaz Ahmad Fatiyana of Kamalia.

Toba Tek Singh became a district in 1982 after it was separated from Faisalabad district. It has four tehsils: Gojra Municipal Committee with 36 urban wards and 30 rural union councils; Kamalia Municipal Committee with 34 urban wards and 16 rural UCs; Pir Mehal Municipal Committee with 18 urban wards and 16 rural UCs; and Toba Tek Singh Municipal Committee with 30 urban wards and 27 rural UCs.

There are 347 candidates in the race for chairman-vice chairman panels in the 85 union councils of Toba Tek Singh. Of these, 178 are contesting as independents, 75 are PTI ticket holders or are being supported by the party, and the PML-N is supporting 73 candidates in the area. The Pakistan National Muslim League headed by former MNA Amjad Ali Warraich of Gojra has fielded 10 panels of candidates. The Jamaat-i-Islami and the Pakistan Awami Tehreek have fielded three candidates each. The Pakistan Peoples Party used to be a major player however it seems to have faded into oblivion over the past few years.

There are 1,180,194 registered voters – 667,522 men and 512,672 women – in the district. The Election Commission of Pakistan has appointed 19 returning officers, 38 assistant returning officers and 2,684 presiding officers and 4,837 assistant presiding officers for 1,082 polling stations.

None of the candidates appear to be contesting elections on the basis of a party manifesto. All appear to be currying favour with strong biradari notables and wealthy families in the district.

It does not appear as if any major political party has developed a strategy for the elections. An overwhelming proportion of candidates are independents.

Rival candidates have accused the PML-N of using state machinery to vet its candidates. They say the Special Branch had conducted a survey (a copy of the questionnaire is available with The Express Tribune) to vet candidates and analyse each union council and urban ward in the district.

The report carries information regarding union councils’ composition, vote distribution, major biradris, political affiliation of influentials and influence of biradris, important personalities in each union council, strong candidates and their credentials, expected candidates, the and problems and issues of each union council and ward.

Based on this survey, they say, the PML-N picked electable candidates and local party organisations were asked to opt out and support the candidates,.

Three chairman-vicechairman panels have been elected unopposed: independent Ghulam Murtaza Kharl from UC-62, Ali Abbas Kirmani of PML-N and former tehsil nazim of Kamalia from UC-63, and Syed Qutab Ali Shah alias Ali Baba from UC-77 of Kamalia.

All three are in the race for Toba Tek Singh District Council chairman.

Fauzia Khalid, wife of MNA Khalid Warraich from Gojra, is contesting on a PML-N ticket from UC-10, Gojra, against PTI’s Umar Iftikhar.

PML-N’s Mian Masood Ahmad Shahid is contesting the election from UC-28 and is gunning for the district council chairman slot.

Chaudhary Muhammad Ashfaq is contesting the election from UC-30 in Chak 393-JB against PML-N’s Muhammad Naeem and independent candidate Muhammad Nadeem.

UC-30 has a population of 14,889 with 11,213 voters. The Arain biradari accounts for 60 per cent of the population and the remaining comprises members of the Jaat, Gujjar and Rajput biradaris. All three contestants from the area are Arain.

Muhammad Tufail, a resident, says the roads in the area are full of potholes, access to drinking water is limited, there are inadequate irrigation facilities, and a non-existent sewerage system.

Sardar Muhammad Masood Khan Gadi, son of former district nazim Muraad Gadi and brother of MPA Ayub Gadi, is contesting the election from UC-41 Chak 184-GB against PTI’s Musawwir Hussain Khan Gadi.

This UC has a population of 14,490 with 8,841 registered voters.

The main problems of this UC according to Talib Hussain, a resident of the area, are: lack of access to safe drinking water, shortage of irrigation water and open drains. A major problem in Toba Tek Singh’s rural and urban areas is a lack of higher education facilities. Thousands of students from this area apply for admission to MBA, BBA, IT, MPhil and PhD courses at universities in Faisalabad, Lahore and Multan.

Chaudhary Ashfaq Ahmad started his political career as a member of the district council in 1983 and 1987 and became MPA twice on PPP tickets and an MNA once. His nephew Farhan Lateef became an MNA when Ashfaq was disallowed because he did not have a graduate degree.

Ashfaq Ahmad became nazim of Toba Tek Singh in 2002. This time around he is running for district council chairman and has been campaigning tirelessly. Ashfaq’s younger brother is also a former tehsil nazim. Talking to The Express Tribune, he says Toba Tek Singh is a shadow of its former self due to lack of interest in local affairs shown by its MNAs and MPAs.

He says he is hopeful of winning the elections and says that he will restore the district to its former glory.

Toba Tek Sing Tehsil Municipal Committee

There are 30 wards in Toba Tek Singh Municipal Committee where 155 candidates are contesting the local government elections. Of them, 28 are supported by the PML-N, 26 by the PTI, four each by the Pakistan National Muslim League and the PML-Functional, one each by the Pakistan Awami Tehreek and the Jamaat-i-Islami. The Pakistan Peoples Party has not fielded any candidate.

Candidates have been campaigning around biradri politics and local grouping and have been currying favour of local influentials.

The campaigns have mostly featured tea parties where soft drinks and tea flow generously and biryani is served to all supporters. Most candidates have set up election offices near homes of important families in the area and speak about their close proximity to power circles.

What is missing from the campaign is rallies, corner meetings, speeches, party programmes and political agendas of independent candidates. Instead, there has been a competition of who has the most prominently displayed banners and who serves the best meals to supporters.

Toba Tek Singh was once dominated by left parties which seem to have faded into oblivion and have now been replaced by new-wealth circles and strong biradari politics.

Mehboob Ali Sani and Umar Farooq Bajwa of the PML-N and Mian Muhammad Shehzad of the PTI are said to be the strongest candidates of Toba Tek Singh Municipal Committee.

Gojra Tehsil Municipal Committee

The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz had swept all National and Provincial Assembly seats from this area in the 2013 general elections. However, strong infighting between PML-N’s MNAs and MPAs and Pakistan National Muslim League’s Amjad Ali Warraich might tip the scales. Senator Muhammad Hamza of the PML-N has been supporting likeminded candidates instead of those fielded by the PML-N.

There are 36 wards in Gojra Municipal Committee in which 34 candidates are supported by the PML-N, 31 by the PTI, 27 by the PNML, three each by the Jamaat-i-Islami and the Pakistan Awami Tehreek, five by the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid, one by the Sunni Ittehad Council and 63 are running as independents. There are 167 candidates in the race. The PPP used to be a major player in the municipal committee in previous elections. However, it has been missing from the political scene since 2013.

Most of the votes are likely to be split between PML-N candidates; those supported by the PTI, PPP and local influential; and PNML’s candidates.

Residents of Gojra mostly bemoan a lack of education facilities for postgraduate, MPhil and doctoral candidates. There are environmental issues caused by three sugar mills in the area. The area’s narrow roads are usually jammed with traffic and residents complain of sound and air pollution. Noor Hussain Ansari and Mian Abdul Salam of the PML-N, Tariq Naeem and Asif Ehsan Gujjar of the PTI, and Khurram Warraich and Sajjad Sehal of the PNML are strong candidates for chairmanship of Gojra Municipal Committee.

Pir Mehal Tehsil Municipal Committee

There are 18 wards in Pir Mehal Municipal Committee where 108 candidates are contesting the elections. Of them, 18 are supported by the PML-N, 12 by the PTI and one by the Jamaat-i-Islami. The Pakistan Peoples Party has not fielded any candidate.

This is PTI Punjab Organiser Chaudhary Muhammad Sarwar’s hometown and he has set up a charity foundation which he has been using to campaign for his candidates.

However, he is being opposed by strong candidates and even some members of his own family.  No political party can claim decisive support here. Political analysts are of the view that independents will probably end up winning most seats.  Pir Mehal comprises mostly rural areas and lacks basic amenities including reliable water supply, drainage system and inadequate irrigation water supply.  Khalid Sardar and Siddique Payara of the PML-N, and Muhammad Shareef Rehmani and Muhammad Aslam of the PTI are considered strong candidates for chairmanship of Pir Mehal Municipal Committee

Published in The Express Tribune, November 18^th, 2015.