Although the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) have agreed to seat adjustment for over 200 seats of national and provincial assemblies, on ground it seems that both parties are contesting against each other in the upcoming elections.
Sources said PML-Q’s Chaudhrys had initially devised an electoral strategy under which leaders from both sides, PPP and PML-Q, would appear together at various public meetings and campaign drives in various districts and important constituencies. They have also hired a chopper to move together to distant areas.
However, the Chaudhrys shelved the plan after adverse reaction from PML-Q candidates. These candidates wanted their leadership to visit their constituencies alone, without the PPP leaders.
At the constituency level, candidates from both sides are not cooperating with each other and the thought of PPP and PML-Q candidates hand-in-hand acting upon a well thought out strategy to defeat their rivals is far from reality.
PML-Q candidates believe they should avoid PPP’s baggage of misrule in the last five years if they are to contest elections with any hope of good results.
In five constituencies at least, the PPP and PML-Q candidates are face to face, including the clash of titans in Gujrat with arch rivals Pervaiz Elahi and Ahmad Mukhtar facing each other. According to PML-Q sources, candidates including Maj (r) Tahir Sadiq refused to become joint candidates.
Privately, PML-Q leaders claim they would perform better than PPP in Punjab.
It appears the Chaudhrys are double-minded over the decision to make an election alliance with the PPP. But they are not coming out wit their grievances in the hope that a post-election scenario could require another PPP and PML-Q coalition. Therefore, they seem to be following a ‘wait and watch’ policy.
Political analysts believe with hardly any cooperation between the two sides, it is not possible that seat adjustment on such a large scale would produce the desired result or make any visible dent in PML-N’s chances.
