After discontent, Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar announces resignation from Senate

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Senator Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar on Tuesday announced that he will be resigning from the upper house of parliament after the party conveyed its unhappiness at some of his political positions. 

In a series of tweets, Khokhar shared that he met with a senior PPP leader who told him that the party’s leadership was “not happy” with his political positions and was asking for his resignation. “I gladly agreed to resign,” Khokhar wrote.

“As a political worker, I cherish my right to express my opinions on matters of public interest. Thankful to the party leadership for giving me the Senate seat from Sindh. Differences aside, it has been a wonderful journey with them and wish them the best,” Khokhar added.

He further wrote that he will submit his resignation to the Senate chairman in person today (Wednesday). It is believed that the PPP approached Khokhar and asked for his resignation via party veteran Farooq Hamid Naek.

Khokhar’s resignation from the Senate and his parting of ways with the PPP had been in the making for a long time. Khokhar was vocally opposed to some of the PPP’s recent policies and political maneuvering.

In December last year, Khokhar stepped down as the spokesperson for PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari. Senior sources within the party at the time had told newsmen that Khokhar was “unhappy” and “uncomfortable” with the party leadership for quite some time. One of them said that Khokhar had been attending party meetings but was found to be “alienated and reticent.”

It was also reported in the media that Khokhar had left a WhatsApp group that the party had created prior to the 2018 general elections. It was believed at the time that Khokhar was displeased with the PPP’s decision about resignations from the assemblies and its back-channel contacts with the military establishment.

Then, in March this year, Khokhar publicly expressed regret over PPP’s decision to use the Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) votes for Yousuf Raza Gilani’s election as the opposition leader in the Senate. In a statement at the time, Khokhar said the move had harmed the-then opposition’s cause and also damaged the party’s ideological stance. “We should not have taken the votes of BAP members,” he had said in the statement, referring to the independent senators who voted for Gilani.

He added that PDM’s “recent decisions” had left a poor impression on the people. “In the eyes of the public, we were seen as protecting and reinforcing an extremely unpopular government due to our infighting,” he added. “We will have to prioritise people’s politics over power politics if we want to gain the lost stature in the other provinces.”

Since the PDM alliance came to power in April this year, Khokhar had been a vocal critic of some of its policies. In an Op-Ed published in The News in June, Khokhar wrote that the surest way to end the political instability and uncertainty was to hold an early election.

“The ballot box is the surest arbiter of disputes among free men. The inherent loathing of this idea by the real power-wielders in the country has brought us to our knees,” he wrote in these pages.

In August, Khokhar condemned the government over the alleged torture of PTI’s Shahbaz Gill in custody, claiming he had seen some disturbing pictures. “No matter how much you disagree with or dislike him, a man’s dignity should not have been violated like this. Either the government of Mian Shehbaz is complicit or spineless to prevent such an atrocity! Shame on us,” he wrote on Twitter. “Include the so-called Pakistan Democratic Movement in it too. Serving democracy by torturing political opponents. What a farce!” he added. It is believed that the final straw was Khokhar’s vocal support for Azam Swati in the alleged video leak scandal.

Last week, Khokhar expressed solidarity with PTI’s Azam Swati after he broke down in a press talk, claiming that his family had received private videos of himself and his wife. Khokhar described the intelligence agencies as “shameless and disrespectful” for this act. “This clip of Azam Swati Sahib is a slap on the face of the Senate Chairman and all parliamentarians,” he added.

Following Khokhar’s announcement on Tuesday, former human rights minister Shireen Mazari wrote on Twitter, “Your principled positions on human rights issues have been unwavering and beyond party politics. The Senate will be poorer with your resignation.”

PTI’s Ali Muhammad Khan said Khokhar’s “name will remain in history.” He also added that the doors of PTI were open for “brave and righteous people like you.” Ex-minister Fawad Chaudhry said that although Khokhar lost the senatorship, he had gained “unmatched respect.”

“Mustafa has shown courage and has been consistent in his views. Our dynastic parties have no ideology hence cannot tolerate individuals like him,” wrote PTI’s Hammad Azhar.

During his tenure as senator, Khokhar chaired the Senate Committee for Human Rights and was very proactive in this role. He extended support to student activists, civil society and families of missing persons and made the Senate accessible to people from marginalised backgrounds.

Former federal minister and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister Aftab Khan Sherpao praised Khokhar for his political position. “Mustafa, I appreciate your principled and brave stance. You have a bright future and my best wishes and prayers are with you,” he commented under Khokhar’s tweet.

Historian and political activist Ammar Ali Jan wrote, “The Senate is losing a person who opposed state repression of students, called Manzoor Pashteen to the Senate, raised his voice for Armaan Loni, highlighted the issue of Baloch Missing Persons in the Senate. Sadly, the monarchy prevailing in the parties is blocking the way for honest political activists like Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar.”