Sunday, Oct 20, 2002
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By B. Muralidhar Reddy
There is utter confusion in the party ranks with the chief of the PPP Parliamentarians group, Makhdoom Amin Fahim, desperately promoting his candidature for Prime Ministership. A section has resented the ``indecent haste'' and believes that he has nullified the party's year-long campaign against the Musharraf regime and the pro-military and religious parties. Mr. Fahim's moves did not go down well even with the Alliance for Restoration of Democracy, conglomerate of 15 parties, which includes the PPP and the Pakistan Muslim League, led by the former Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif. At a meeting here on Friday, the alliance categorically rejected any move to form a government in cooperation with the pro-Musharraf parties. The ARD appears divided on the strategy it should adopt in the efforts being made by various groups to form a government. Its decision to keep a distance from the pro-Musharraf parties is a clear rebuff to Mr. Fahim's declaration that his party has no reservation in teaming up with any group to form a government. It appears that there are two views within the PPP on the question of joining hands with the pro-Musharraf parties. Mr. Fahim's announcement that in the ``largest national interest,'' no party should be considered an "untouchable" has not been well received by a dominant section of his own party. As for the PML (N), it cannot be expected to approve of any plan in which the rebel Muslim Leaguers would have a dominant role. While the rebels have emerged as the largest group in the National Assembly with 73 seats, the parent party has won only14 seats. At a meeting here, the ARD declared that it would prefer the alliance of religious parties over pro-Musharraf groups. The Sharif group is believed to have influenced the decision of the alliance. Of course, the ARD chief, Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan, who could not contest the elections due to the "graduation" clause, was also opposed to any pact with the pro-Musharraf groups. Mr. Khan said at a news conference here that if the ARD did not succeed in its efforts to form a government with the help of the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal, it would prefer to sit in the opposition. The alliance had decided not to compromise on the restoration of the 1973 Constitution and would continue its struggle in Parliament as well. The PML (N), meanwhile, alleged that Gen. Musharraf, in a bid to perpetuate the military rule, engineered the elections and brought about a hung parliament, pushing the country into a deep crisis. He had weakened the national parties and fragmented them, a move that would undermine the federal foundations, it said in a statement. ``The PML (N) candidates leading in their constituencies up to late night were converted into losers by the morning. All sorts of misconduct, including distribution of fake ballots, stuffing ballot boxes at gunpoint and changing the declared results at the last moment were indulged in to ensure victory of the pro-regime contestants,'' it said.
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