Anti-PPP alliance in Sindh may not be heading for a smooth sail

Various political parties, including the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N), Muttahida Qaumi Movement Pakistan (MQM-P), Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA), Awami National Party (ANP) and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) are currently engaged in discussions to jointly contest the coming general elections against the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) in Sindh.

However, it appears that rather than formally uniting to create a joint electoral strategy, all the parties in the alliance are focused on securing their maximum individual interests, due to which the alliance may find itself dealing with major differences within its ranks.

Despite several consecutive meetings among these parties to arrive on decisions regarding joint candidates and power-sharing, there have been no tangible developments so far.

In a recent statement, the MQM-P expressed its willingness to support any government in the Centre that guarantees the three constitutional amendments it has put forward. The PML-N and MQM-P have agreed to collaborate in Sindh and have announced the formation of a six-member committee to expedite the talks. However, despite several meetings, no formal alliance has been announced, with both parties only stating that the discussions will yield positive results.

MQM-P Senior Deputy Convener Mustafa Kamal has publicly declared his intention to contest the upcoming elections from the National Assembly constituency of Baldia Town.

This seat, however has a strong base of PML-N supporters that fielded Shehbaz Sharif from here in the previous general elections, who lost by a mere 718 votes to Faisal Vawda of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

The seat later went to the PPP in the by-election after Vawda’s resignation from the National Assembly upon becoming a senator. Political analysts say this constituency is the only stronghold of the PML-N in Karachi and the party would not easily compromise on it by supporting the MQM-P there.

Similarly, the PML-N wants its candidates in many other constituencies of Sindh from where its supposed allies such as the GDA and JUI-F are not willing to withdraw.

Talking to The News, several GDA leaders disclosed that they initiated talks with the PML-N at the behest of powers that be to form an effective electoral alliance against the continued rule of the PPP in Sindh. However, the Pakistan Muslim League-Functional (PML-F), which is a key party of the GDA, became upset when it found that other parties within the GDA were being asked to leave the PML-F-led alliance and formally join the PML-N.

The Sindh chapter of the PML-N also reportedly invited sidelined GDA leaders to join their ranks. Despite these developments, the GDA is still interested in forming an alliance with the PML-N against the PPP. According to a top GDA leader, the PPP has established a corrupt system in collaboration with civil bureaucracy in the province, and influential quarters want to dismantle it.

As GDA, MQM-P and JUI-F leaders recently visited Mardan House to convince Sindh ANP President Shahi Syed to join the anti-PPP alliance in the province, Syed expressed willingness to join them on condition that he be made the joint candidate from the NA constituency of Landhi.

The ANP once won two Sindh Assembly seats from Karachi but its influence has much weakened in the city since then. In the recent local bodies elections in Karachi, the party could not win a single ward. The Karachi PPP leadership has expressed desire for seat adjustments with the ANP but the latter has so far not responded to it.

Meanwhile, the JUI-F, with a substantial vote bank in Karachi, particularly Lyari, wants the anti-PPP parties to support it in the Larkana division. Journalist Faizullah Khan contends that the supposed alliance of these parties is merely symbolic and may not hurt the PPP as being claimed. He said the exclusion of the PTI and Jamaat-e-Islami, which emerged as the second-largest party in the 2018 local government elections in Karachi, raises questions about the effectiveness of the alliance. Khan is of the opinion that without the PTI and JI, the PML-N, GDA, JUI-F and MQM-P would not prove sufficient to dent the PPP’s hold in Sindh.

However, he said that considering the MQM-P's aspirations for becoming part of the government in the Centre, it may prioritise forming an alliance with the PML-N in Karachi, even if it came on condition of forfeiting its candidature in Baldia Town.