KARACHI: The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) can retrieve PS-127 — a provincial assembly seat of rural and urban areas of Malir — after 12 years, believe majority of observers. Contradicting the argument some of the observers are of the view that despite fielding of strong candidates by the PPP and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) is in a position to win the PS-127 by-election.
Senior analyst and journalist Mir Abbas told The News that despite presence of PTI candidate, the PPP will win the seat easily. Kalmati was of the view that due to the present situation the MQM could not use its fear and terror policy and other tactics which it used in the past for winning the elections.
The seat fell vacant after the resignation of former MQM Rabita Committee member Ashfaq Mangi on April 18. Mangi joined the Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP) and then submitted his resignation. He was elected from the seat in 2013 elections.
The by-election will be held on September 9. The MQM has fielded former MPA Waseem Ahmed while Manzoor Jokhio is the covering candidate. Former Nazim of Gaddap Town Murtaza Baloch is a candidate of the PPP, Nadeem Memon is a candidate of the PTI and Sanaullah Qureshi is a candidate of MQM-H.
The constituency is a mix of urban and rural areas. Urdu speaking and Sindhi and Baloch communities live in the area but majority of votes of Sindhis and Baloch could be divided between the PPP and PTI. Its urban parts include Jaffar Tayyar Society, a Shia majority neighborhood, Malir Khokhrapar and the Gharibabad Union Council.
Dozens of villages of Sindhi and Baloch including Old Thano, Ghazi Dawood Brohi Goth, Aasoo Goth, Bachal Goth, Hingora-abad, Soomar Kundani and Memon Goth are also part of this constituency where various Baloch and Sindhi tribes are settled making up rural parts.
PS-127 was constituted in 2001 and Abdullah Murad Baloch was elected as the first MPA. Murad bagged 21,771 votes against his rival candidate Shahbaz Hussain of MQM, who had secured 16,810 votes.
However, the PPP could not win the constituency after Abdullah Murad was gunned down in March 2004. The legal heirs of the slain MPA tried to nominate MQM chief Altaf Hussain and other central leaders of MQM in the murder case but their case could not be registered.
In that year the MQM won the seat in by-election when Yousaf Muneer got 41,089 while UmarJat of PPP could get only 25,430. In the 2008 general polls, MQM candidate Nisar Ahmed Panhwar bagged 65,434 votes, defeating the PPP’s Muhammad Rafiq who secured 46,469 votes.
Similarly, in General elections of 2013 the then candidate of MQM Ashfaq Mangi bagged 59,811 votes defeating the PPP’s Ashraf Samoo and the PTI’s Syed Azhar. Samoo and Azhar had secured 15,158 votes and 13,818 votes respectively.
The PTI bagged a significant number of votes in the constituency in 2013 general polls. The recent inclusion of Malir’s influential chieftain Jam Abdul Karim Bijar and Haleem Adil Sheikh has made the PTI a stronger political force in the constituency.
Bijar and Sheikh joined the PTI this year along with eight district councilors. For the upcoming by-polls, the PTI in consultation with Jam and Memon communities, has fielded Nadeem Memon, a former Sindh government officer.
MQM Member of Provincial Assembly (MPA) Jamal Ahmed told The News that despite tough situation for the MQM will win this seat with the support of masses. Mr. Ahmed said the MQM had won the seat three times while the PPP won it only one time.
PTI leader Haleem Adil Sheikh told The News that the PTI had become the strongest party in Malir as it had won the support of all communities of area due to the clear-headed stance of Imran Khan.
Sheikh claimed that the PTI was in a position to win the bye-election. Salman Murad Baloch, PPP leader and Chairman District Council Karachi, told The News that the PPP will the election with a big margin as according to him after the assassination of his father former MPA Abdullah Murad, the rival party won the seat through rigging and support of its terrorist element.
