ISLAMABAD: The newfound courtship between the Pakistan People’s Party and the PML-Q has not only annoyed some ‘Q’ leaders, but also some PPP stalwarts are also cross with the leadership for giving political space to the Chaudhrys of Gujrat.
A source in the PPP told Pakistan Today that some PPP Punjab stalwarts had also opposed the potential PPP-PML-Q alliance due to their conventional rivalries with the Chaudhrys. “Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar, Qamar Zaman Kaira, Nazar Muhammad Gondal are among those who do not want to see the Chaudhrys flourish in Punjab,” he said.
He said that these leaders had also thwarted efforts to from a PPP-PML-Q coalition in Punjab during the 2009 governor’s rule. Another source in the PPP told Pakistan Today that Raja Pervaiz Ashraf was also among the leaders who opposed a siding with the PMLQ.
“Ashraf is annoyed as the PML-Q’s central leaders have challenged rental power plants in the Supreme Court and accused him massive corruption in the project,” the source said.
Background discussion with PPP leaders revealed that in their opinion, the troika of Babar Awan, Rehman Malik and Punjab Governor Salmaan Taseer had convinced President Asif Ali Zardari to forge an alliance with the PML-Q, with an aim to keep the PML-N under pressure in Punjab.
Meanwhile, the PML-Q’s decision of forging an alliance with the PPP will not only create fissures within the party, but will also isolate the Chaudhrys from other factions of the PML permanently. A senior ‘Q’ leader said the Chaudhrys would be permanently isolated if they opted for an alliance with the PPP.
“Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain was the man who initiated the PML unification move and went to such emotional extents that he even announced his party’s merger with the PML-F. After that, rounds of negotiations started between various factions of the PML led by Salim Saifullah, Ijazul Haq, Sheikh Rashid, Pir Pagara and even PML-N’s central command was approached to convince it for the initiative. Now, if the Chaudhrys join the PPP, all stalwart leaguers will permanently cut off their relations with the PML-Q central command,” he observed.
On the other hand, the PML-N has decided to give a tough time to the PPP at the centre if the latter tried to topple the Punjab government. Talking to Pakistan Today, PML-N MNA Chaudhry Saud Majeed said if the PPP and the PML-Q tried to destabilise the Punjab Government, the federal government would also collapse.
“In the first place, the PPP and PML-Q are not in a position to form a coalition government in the province in the presence of the Unification Bloc, which will not ditch the PML-N,” he said, adding that the potential alliance might only be able to cajole 10 to 20 MPAs from the unification bloc.
“But to form a coalition government in Punjab, the PML-Q needs all 50 MPAs associated with the Unification Bloc,” he said.
