Zehri, Baloch join PPP: Departure from PML-N was a mere formality, foregone conclusion

ISLAMABAD: The defection of two important electables from Balochistan – Nawab Sanaullah Zehri and Lt-Gen (retd) Abdul Qadir Baloch – to the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) is merely a formality as they had said goodbye to the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN) a long time ago.

There are not many in the PMLN, who will shed tears over the switching of sides by the duo. For them, their departure was a foregone conclusion and the formal exit of the two leaders from the PMLN was merely a matter of time.

However, the development shows the PPP’s preparation for the next general elections when it is hoping to bag seats from Balochistan where it has had no presence for quite some time.

During the PPP’s association with the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), there was an understanding among its constituents that no component would accept deserters from each other’s parties. However, the PPP is no longer bound by the PDM’s discipline after its departure from the opposition coalition. Even before its ouster, forced by the two other major parties of the PDM, the PPP had consented to accept Zehri and Baloch. At the time, its policy had displeased the PMLN and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUIF).

The story of why Zehri, who is the chief of his Jhalawan tribe to which Baloch also belongs, left the PMLN by Zehri is an interesting one. During the eventful time when the entire PMLN parliamentary party had defected back in early 2018, Zehri was the chief minister of Balochistan.

“Hold your ground and go down fighting,” was the message conveyed by the PMLN’s top leadership to Zehri. “But unfortunately, he surrendered, resigned and raced away to Dubai,” former Speaker and prominent PMLN leader Sardar Ayaz Sadiq told The News.

He said Zehri had not consulted any central PMLN leader prior to taking his decision to bow out under pressure. “The PMLN was left high and dry. Even after departing from Pakistan, he had no contact whatsoever with the PMLN. After that, he had been left with no role or place in the party.”

The floor-crossing of the entire PMLN parliamentary party in the Balochistan Assembly had deprived it of any Senate seat from the province in the election held just two months later. Had the party been in place in Balochistan, it was set to secure a majority of Senate seats. The Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) was midwifed overnight and replaced the PML-N at the top in Balochistan. It later won most of the Senate seats as well as having its own chief minister. The plan that had been devised to wipe out the PMLN from the Balochistan Assembly was implemented impeccably.

The criticism of Lt-Gen (retd) Asim Saleem Bajwa, frequently done by the PML-N, is also closely linked to Zehri’s forced ouster, the creation of BAP and decimation of the PML-N from Balochistan.

Sensing the alarming situation, the then PML-N Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi had flown to Balochistan in January 2018 for damage control. But he was unable to stem the mushrooming crisis. No PML-N lawmaker was willing to meet or listen to him. Opposition legislators were to table a no-confidence motion against Zehri the same day. It was clear that the move was not simple happenstance, but a well-thought-out manoeuvre, with an eye on the upcoming Senate elections.

While the relations between Zehi and the PMLN had ruptured beyond possible repair, the last episode that finally broke the bond happened when the PDM held its first-ever public meeting in Quetta in December 2020. Qadir Baloch called Zehri from Dubai to attend the event and insisted that his chieftain would sit on the stage with other PDM leaders. However, the PMLN told him that it was not possible because only the central alliance stalwarts would occupy the podium. Additionally, Zehri objected to the presence of his area rival, Sardar Akhtar Mengal, but he was informed that Mengal heads a political party that stands with the PDM and therefore, cannot be removed from the stage.

After that snub, Zehri used harsh language against PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif that he repeated while officially announcing his affiliation with the PPP.

However, regardless of the fact that Zehri is now going to be a ticket holder of a political party, he enjoys support in his constituency, based on his tribal following and traditions, and he can win his seat. In that respect, his signing up for the PPP is that party’s gain and a loss for the PMLN.

PPP’s detractors claim that the party is trying to become ‘another BAP’ in Balochistan but that would be difficult in the presence of the actual BAP. However, it could still get a small share of the federal and provincial seats from this province in future parliamentary polls.