Karachi
Because of internal rifts within the ranks of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, a Karachi-level alliance - formed to snatch two districts of Karachi from the Muttahida Qaumi Movement - has weakened, The News learnt on Monday.
The MQM is set to take the reins of the city’s metropolitan corporation and form its governments in three districts – Central, Korangi and East.
However, in two districts – South and West, the MQM was up against an alliance of six political parties, including the Pakistan People’s Party, the PML-N, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, the Awami National Party, the Jamaat-e-Islami and the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl.
Having 204 members in the 308-member Karachi Council, the MQM is in a position to form its government in the Karachi Municipal Corporation without entering in an alliance with another political party.
However, other parties have also submitted the papers of their candidates for the slots of the mayor and deputy mayor.
Likewise, the MQM does not need another party to form its governments in the district municipal corporations of Central, East and Korangi, as it has a comfortable majority in each district.
In the 57-member DMC Central, the MQM has 56 members. Similarly, the MQM has a majority in the 54-member DMC Korangi and 47-member DMC East.
However, a tough fight is expected in the two districts – West and South, where the PML-N has a crucial number of votes that a political party would need to form its governments there. In the 20-member DMC Malir, the PPP is in position to form government after managing to secure 13 votes. The ANP and the JI have also announced that they would support the PPP in the DMC Malir.
DMC West
In the 67-member DMC West, the MQM has emerged as the largest political party by grabbing 32 seats and is confident that it would form its government there without any other party’s support.
However, the six-party alliance claimed that they had mustered the support of 35 members belonging to them.
The alliance against the MQM has distributed seats – including the slots of chairperson, the vice-chairperson and the reserved seats for labourers, women, youth and non-Muslims – among the component parties.
PML-N’s Asif Khan has been nominated for the slot of the chairperson and PTI’s Azizullah Afridi for the vice-chairperson’s seat. However, The News has learnt that three members of the PML-N are unhappy with the alliance and are likely to support the MQM.
DMC South
In the 47-member DMC South, the PPP and the MQM both have claimed that they had gained support of the majority of members.
Analysts said the PML-N with its crucial number of votes would be the deciding factor.
The PML-N has developed internal differences in the DMC South. Its district president, Sultan Bahadur Khan, who has been elected a district labour councillor with the support of the MQM and is now a candidate for the vice-chairman’s slot, wants to forge an electoral alliance with the MQM.
The proposal to forge an alliance with the MQM has caused an internal rift within the party. Several members have refused to abide by the agreement and announced that they would support the PPP.
DMC Malir
In the 20-member DMC Malir, the PPP is in a position to form its government with the ANP and the JI supporting it.
Interestingly, unlike other districts, the MQM is out of the contest as it has grabbed only two seats there and the main competitor against the PPP is the PML-N, which has secured five seats.
The PPP has nominated Jan Muhammad Baloch and Abdul Khaliq Marwat for the slots of chairperson and the vice-chairperson respectively. The PML-N has nominated Waheed Zaman Lala and Malik Muhamamd Taj for these seats.
