Daily Times

Sindh Minister for Education Saeed Ghani on Wednesday said that Jamat-e-Islami (JI) was on Pakistan Peoples Party’s (PPP) priority for talks over forming an alliance to appoint Karachi’s mayor. He said the PPP was willing to work together with Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) to settle on a “formula” for deciding the coveted seat of Karachi’s mayor, adding that his party was willing to prioritise talks with the JI. Amid the finalisation of results, the minister hinted that his party might form an alliance with JI but ruled out any possibility to join hands with the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). “It would be better that PPP and JI hold talks,” the minister said during a press conference in Karachi. Ghani said that the information being provided to JI’s Karachi Chief Hafiz Naeem-ur-Rehman are not correct. “Hafiz Naeem’s information regarding victory on 94 seats is wrong,” the minister said. He said that even PPP’s winning candidates have requested recounting claiming that their votes were less. “We didn’t create a fuss over JI’s request for recounting. Jamat rioted when they realised that they were losing Akhtar Colony’s seat,” Ghani said, adding that votes were recounted for union council (UC) of the said area. Ghani said that PPP also has objections over the results in some places, and requested the JI to be part of the recounting.

While criticising the runner-up party, the minister alleged that JI held the returning officer in District West hostage. “Hafiz Naeem-ur-Rehman threatened the commissioner while talking to him,” he said, adding that doing so is totally inappropriate. He said that such a behaviour wasn’t expected of the JI’s Karachi chief.

He said that there were people in PPP as well who were disgruntled and enraged but he didn’t provoke them. “JI got seats more than expected but ours weren’t,” Ghani said, adding that there is no wonder if PPP won 12 of 12 seats in Lyari as it is a stronghold of the party. Same is the case with Manghopir area from where PPP won on 10-16 seats, however, it is unusual if a party moves from zero to hundred, he added.