Date:27/08/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/08/27/stories/2008082760252000.htm

International

No looking back anymore: PML(N)

Nirupama Subramanian

ISLAMABAD: Ignoring an apology from Pakistan People’s Party leader Asif Ali Zardari who also appealed to it to rejoin the ruling coalition, the Nawaz Sharif-led Pakistan Muslim League (N) made it clear on Tuesday there was no looking back for it anymore.

Its candidate for the presidential election, former Chief Justice Saeed-uz-zaman Siddiqui, filed his nomination papers for the September 6 contest on Tuesday, preparing to do battle against Mr. Zardari, who is his party’s candidate.

The entry into the race of the PML(Q), which has fielded party secretary-general Mushahid Hussain Sayed, has turned it into a three-cornered contest. However, the last word on the number of candidates in the fray has to await Saturday, the final day to withdraw nominations.

Barring a possible last-minute withdrawal by Mr. Sayed, his candidature has opened a new dimension to the contest, especially as both the PML(N) and the PPP are reported to be making hectic efforts to woo the PML(Q).

For Mr. Sharif, of course, the support of the Q League is crucial not for the presidential elections alone, but also to keep his party’s government in Punjab intact, should the PPP withdraw from it.

In the presidential election, a candidate in a two-cornered contest needs a simple majority of votes from the electoral college to win. But in a multiple-cornered contest, the candidate with the highest number of votes is declared the winner. The voting is conducted through a secret ballot.

The electoral college is made up of the National Assembly and the Senate — the Lower and Upper Houses of Parliament — and the four provincial Assemblies. The total number of votes works out to 702.

The PPP is confident it has the numbers for Mr. Zardari to sail through the elections even if the two Leagues join hands against him. Information Minister Sherry Rehman said the PPP was not apprehensive of such an eventuality.

“We do not fear if any party forms coalition with the other against PPP,” she said as she emerged from the Election Commission where a large number of PPP supporters had gone to file nomination papers on Mr. Zardari’s behalf. “We enjoy the support of as many voters as required,” she said, describing the day of filing the nomination papers for presidential election as “a day of victory of democratic forces, a victory achieved after years-long struggle.”

In an interview to the state-run Pakistan Television late on Monday, Mr. Zardari said he still wanted Mr. Sharif to return to the coalition.

“Even today, I want Nawaz to come along with us, and if his feelings are hurt, I request him to forgive me. The country is facing immense difficulties and we want to overcome them with the democratic forces of the country,” Mr. Zardari said. Hinting at the reasons why he could not reinstate the judges as demanded by Mr. Sharif, he said “perhaps I cannot reveal the whole truth to the nation”. There was no immediate reaction from the PML(N) to Mr. Zardari’s remarks.