GDA quits race for 17 seats in Karachi in favour of MQM-P

The Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) has announced the withdrawal of their candidates from three National Assembly and 14 provincial assembly constituencies in Karachi in favour of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P).

The announcement to this effect was made by GDA leader Sardar Abdul Rahim and MQM-P Senior Deputy Convener Syed Mustafa Kamal as they spoke at a press conference on Saturday.

The GDA leader told the media persons on the occasion that his party’s candidates are still in the electoral race for the NA-231, PS-84, PS-86 and PS-105 constituencies in the city.

The GDA and MQM-P leaders condemned the recent attacks on and other acts of violence against the MQM-P’s election offices and camps in the city. They expressed optimism that the MQM-P, the GDA and their like-minded allies would secure victory in the February 8 general elections.

GDA leader Rahim said that the candidates of his party and their allies would secure victory in the upcoming elections if the polls are held transparently.

He said that the GDA had earlier entered into seat adjustment agreements with the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl and other allies to jointly contest the polls in Sindh. He claimed that the GDA’s popularity graph has been on the rise in the rural parts of the province.

He mentioned that the MQM-P has already announced support for the GDA candidate Irfanullah Khan Marwat, who is contesting the election for the Sindh Assembly constituency PS-105 in Karachi.

He said the people of the province have been suffering severely due to bad governance that has continued during the rule of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) for 15 years.

MQM-P leader and former city mayor Kamal expressed gratitude to the GDA leadership for the withdrawal of their candidates in Karachi in favour of the MQM-P.

He claimed that the PPP had resorted to terrorism in the city after sensing its defeat in the upcoming general polls. He also claimed that a worker of the MQM-P had lost his life in the city due to the use of terrorist tactics by the PPP.

He said that all the like-minded political forces should stand united to wage a unified struggle to get rid of the PPP’s rule.

He also said that after coming into power, the MQM-P would serve the people in the urban and rural parts of the province without any discrimination.