ISLAMABAD: As Musharraf's close ones faced humiliating defeat in the elections, a number of his past mouthpieces also succumbed to the disliking of the leadership of the Pakistan Muslim League-Q.
"The central leadership of the PML-Q with Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi at the top is main reason behind the defeat of many those considered to be close to Pervez Musharraf in the past five years," is what one of his mouthpieces said.
Former ministers, Hamayum Akhtar Khan, Khurshid Mehmud Kasuri, Dr Sher Afgan Niazi and National Reconstruction Bureauís former chairman Chaudhry Daniyal Aziz are amongst those against whom the PML-Q leadership had grudges because they were close to Musharraf.
"There was a direct interference of the Chaudhrys in my constituency as they awarded me ticket for face-saving but backed an independent candidate against me through official and political machinery," Daniyal Aziz told The News here on Sunday.
Daniyal could not survive despite being amongst the creators of the Local Government system about which there had been lot of hue and cry that it was influencing the elections.
"Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi's planning to blackout me from the political scene surfaced with the submission of the nomination from his close associate and notorious NAB proclaimed offender. At the same time, he also deployed officials of his choice to defeat me," the former NRB chairman alleged.
Daniyal had won the elections 2002 as an independent candidate from his hometown constituency of Narowal but joined the Q-League ranks, what he said was, to protect the local government system after Tanweer Hussain Naqvi vacated the NRB chiefís post.
Giving reasons for his defeat with margin of 7,000 votes, he said he was targeted mainly because he was close to Musharraf. "Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi was annoyed with me since Musharraf stated in a political meeting that he would have appointed me (Daniyal Aziz) as the prime minister of the country if everything was to be done in accordance with his wishes."
Daniyal charged that DPO Ahmed Mubarrak, DIG Syed Tujamal, DSP Virk and DSP Traffic Nasir Jameel supported his rival, an independent candidate installed by the Chaudhrys, on the directives of Pervaiz Elahi. "The opponents were provided with gundas as well as police force to keep me out of politics."
Chaudhry Muhammad Tariq Anees, an independent, was declared successful from the Narowal-II constituency with 45,097 votes against Daniyal Aziz's 37,138. The Nawaz League candidate obtained 22,369 votes from the same seat.
Daniyal Aziz has challenged the election results and the matter is now before the Lahore High Court for hearing on March 5 after the same was turned down by the Election Commission of Pakistan.
"I have all the proofs that I will present before the court so that the rigging on the part of my opponent on the behest of the Chaudhrys can be exposed," the former NRB chairman said.
