The tirade by PPP’s former Sindh home minister and a close confidant of President Asif Ali Zardari, Dr Zulfiqar Mirza, against the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) leader Altaf Hussain, was not just a rant rather it appears to be the part of a well thought-out political strategy.
The success of Dr Zulfiqar Mirza’s outbursts can only be gauged by the fact that the PPP leaders are coming out in the open to support and endorse his viewpoint. It is, however, yet to be seen whether or not this strategy of hard-hitting the MQM has the blessings of President Zardari.
Political analysts – Dr Rasool Bakhsh Raees and Hasan Askari Rizvi – have different opinions over Mirza’s patronage by his party’s top leadership. Eminent social scientist, Dr Rasool Bakhsh Raees, sees Dr Zulfiqar Mirza as a “very successful” politician who alone has eliminated the environment of fear vis-à-vis the MQM’s might. He said that before Dr Mirza’s, nobody could dare speak his mind against the MQM and even if anyone did, it was in private party meetings.
“Keeping the next general elections in mind, Mirza’s tirade was a calculated, smart political move by the PPP to expose the MQM, cut it to its size and put it to its true political spot. It is presumed that the United States and United Kingdom governments, which have worked closely with the MQM in past, provided substantive evidence to Pakistan against the MQM. Now by a single stroke, the PPP has turned the establishment and the people of not only interior Sindh but also from all provinces against the MQM,” Raees observed.
When asked as to how he reached that concussion, Dr Raees said his analysis was based on Mirza’s unwavering support by PPP leaders such as Lashkari Raisani and Pir Mazharul Haq.
“Especially, the statement of Pir Mazharul Haq was calculated and measured. These (statements) reflect that Dr Zulfiqar Mirza is not a lone voice in the PPP,” he said.
He said further that the recent wave of killings and mayhem in Karachi was all about protecting the MQM’s own turf, which, however, was impossible now.
“The power given to Rangers in Karachi is a new phenomenon and it reflects that some decisions have been taken as Rangers are to stay in the port city for a longer period. Now it seems that the MQM is isolated and is at mercy of PPP leadership,” he asserted.
Background interviews and interactions with top PPP leaders also proved the assessment of Dr Raees.
Hassan Askari Rizvi opposed the views of Raees, saying that it was mere speculation as the PPP had never been such a disciplined party like the MQM or Jamat-e-Islami that followed cadre-principle policies.
“My counter argument is that the PPP is not such an organised outfit to follow a two-track policy with Mirza stabbing the MQM and Asif Zardari supporting it. They can’t follow a diametric track. Yes, Mirza had been targeted by the MQM and he lost his temper and was sent on forced leave. Yes he targeted the MQM but he also hit President Zardari. On the other hand, the hawkish elements in the PPP would have supported him who also share his concerns but (one should) keep in mind that his (Mirza’s) basic party membership was not cancelled,” he said.
Rizvi said it would have been a big surprise for him if the PPP had planned this sort of a diametric attack against the MQM. However, Rizvi thinks that the MQM had definitely lost to Mirza as its leadership had shied away from clearing its position on the allegations leveled by Mirza.
“Till now, the MQM has failed to answer any of the definite questions raised by Mirza. This tirade has not only subverted the MQM plans to capture more seats in Sindh but also their plan to win some constituencies in Punjab and other provinces has been erased.
They might dominate the constituencies of Urdu-speaking people but this is Mirza’s success that the MQM, which otherwise was planning to defeat the feudal lords, now has returned to the Mohajir rhetoric it used to make in 1990s – all about the rights of Urdu-speaking people but they would not be welcomed in other parts of the country, including the Punjab,” he added.
He, however, supported the argument of Dr Raees that Mirza had in fact done away with the fear factor associated with the MQM, stating that from now onwards, the people would have courage while talking against the MQM in general.
A PPP stalwart revealed that the idea was actually conceived by Mirza himself while some other close friends of the president had given them final touches with their approval while most of the PPP leaders, even the prime minister, interior minister and even some other ministers of Sindh, were kept out of the loop and Mirza’s outburst took them by surprise— giving the saga a touch of reality.
Another PPP insider claimed that basically, the presidential camp was upset over the active campaigning by Sindhi nationalists against the flip-flopping by the provincial government on the issue of magisterial system in Sindh.
“Soon after the decision to scrap the magisterial system in Sindh, the Sindhi nationalist parties launched a vilification campaign against the PPP which triggered a hate wave across Sindh province against the PPP who was already loosing its charm due to skyrocketing prices and its apathy towards public issues. The Sindhi nationalists heated the temperatures to an extent that the PPP ministers were even restricted to their homes due to public rage and agony,” said the PPP leader, adding that the situation resulted into a plan to defeat the nationalist parties and thus Dr Zulfiqar Mirza was given a go-ahead signal after a series of discussions held at the Presidency.
The source said Dr Zulfiqar Mirza had played all his cards with such a maturity that even the president himself was stunned to the outrage against the MQM’s hegemony in interior Sindh since the Sindhis and Mohajirs had never been able to bridge the cultural gulf between them.
“Sindhi people have been left behind in all spheres of life while the urban society is far more empowered and finically well-off. So this huge gulf has created hatred between the two communities. So whosoever would sing a hate song, would win the sympathies of the either side,” added the source.
The source said there was even no difference of opinion between Dr Zulfiqar Mirza and his spouse, Dr Fehmida Mirza, the National Assembly speaker.
However, even if we follow the assessment of Dr Rasool Bakhsh Raees that the MQM is all set to loose the political turf it owns due to outbursts of Dr Mirza, it would be interesting to watch which political force is going to capture the valued space created by the PPP planning.
If the PPP is successful in capturing this political space, it would only be a miracle as the ruling party itself is loosing its own space in interior Sindh and the reports emerging from interior Sindh suggest that the PPP may loose many constituencies to the Sindhi nationalist parties if they keep failing their promises made to the people time and again.
