Daily Times

GHOTKI

KARACHI: After having lost support of a faction in Ghotki’s political powerhouse Mahar clan, Pakistan Peoples Party is expected to face tough competition on July 25.

In 2013, PPP managed to grab all national and provincial assembly seats in the district, but the political map has shifted in favour of the Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) because of the Mahar family’s division.

Mahars of Ghotki, influential landlords, have been affiliated with several political parties in the past. Before joining the PPP they were with the Pakistan Muslim League-Q, the brain child of the powers that be during General (retd) Pervez Musharraf’s regime. Ali Muhammad Mahar was elected Sindh chief minister during that time.

For 2018 elections, Mahar family is divided in two rival camps – one is with the PPP and the other with the GDA that is being led in the district by Ali Gohar Khan Mahar. His brother Raja Khan Mahar and cousin Muhammad Bux Khan Mahar are with the PPP.

The family has candidates on one of the two NA seats and three of the four PS seats.

According to Allah Warayo Buzdar, a local journalist, after the division among Mahars, Ali Gohar camp (with GDA) is stronger than Raja Khan Mahar camp (with PPP). “The chief of the Mahars is Sardar Muhammad Baksh Mahar. However, Ali Gohar also enjoys widespread support. Majority of people who are associated with Mahar family are supporting Ali Gohar,” Buzdar says, adding that the family division will dent the PPP camp.

Besides Mahars, other influential groups are Loond, Dahar, Pitafi and Dharejo.

The district also has a sizable number of religious vote. That is why Maulana Fazlur Rehman-led Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA), an alliance of five religious political parties, has also fielded candidates in the district.

The Pir of Bharchundi Dargah, Faqir Abdul Haq aka Mian Mitho, infamous for forced conversions of young girls from Hindu families, is also contesting for an NA seat as an independent candidate. Mian Mitho had submitted nomination forms for NA-204 as a GDA candidate. But soon, GDA parted ways with him and withdrew the ticket. He proceeded to contest as an independent.

According to Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), there are 706,541 registered voters in the district.

The four provincial assembly seats are PS-18 (Ubauro taluka), PS-19, (Daharki taluka), PS-20 (Khan Garh taluka) and PS-21 (Ghotki taluka).

The two NA seats are NA-204 (Ubauro taluka and Daharki taluka) and NA-205 (Ghotki taluka and Khan Garh taluka).

In NA 204, PPP has fielded a member of its old guard, former minister Sardar Khalid Khan Loond. He will face arch rival Pir Abdul Haq alias Mian Mithoo, considered a major contender. In 2002, Khalid had won this seat on a PPP ticket but later on changed his loyalty to PML-Q, and secured a ministership in Prime Ministers Zafarullah Jamali and Shukat Aziz’s cabinets. In 2008, Khalid was defeated by Mian Mithoo who contested on a PPP ticket. Khalid lost to PPP’s Ali Gohar Mahar in 2013. Mian Mithoo was not awarded ticket by the PPP in 2013 over the Rinkle Kumari incident.

For July 25 contest, Khalid has once again secured the ticket of the PPP. Though they denied a ticket to Mian Mitho but the GDA is believed to be extending support to Mian Mithoo against the PPP. PTI, Ali Gohar Mahar’s camp and Nadir Leghari are also supporting Mian Mithoo.

Still, Allah Warayo Buzdar insists that Khalid’s position remains strong. “In 2013 elections, Khalid performed very well although he was contesting on a PPP ticket. Another factor that favours him is that Mian Mithoo will be opposed by minorities as well as Urdu and Punjabi speakers,” he says.

In NA 205, PPP’s Ali Muhammad Khan Mahar won in 2013. However, this time Ali Mohammad is contesting as an independent candidate. The PPP has fielded a relatively new face Ahsanullah Sundrani. “Ali Muhammad has the advantage of around 30,000 votes in Khanpur and Khangarh. Ahsanullah Sundrani lacks political standing. Therefore, Mahar is expected to secure the seat,” Buzdar says.

In PS-18, the 2013 rivals will face off again on July 25. PPP’s Jam Mahtab Dahar had defeated PTI’s Shahryar Shar back then. This time, Shar is also getting support from the GDA. PML-N and MMA have also fielded candidates. “This is going to be a fifty-fifty contest. Shahryar Shar has support of Mian Mithoo. In 2013 elections, Mithoo’s son contested and got around 10,000 votes whereas Shar lost with the margin of 6,000 votes,” Buzdar mentions.

In PS-19, PPP has retained Abdul Bari Pitafi who will be facing GDA’s Ali Gohar Mahar. However, Bari’s brother Halaar Pitafi is also contesting the election and is expected to divide the Pitafi tribe’s vote, favouring GDA’s Mahar ultimately.

PS-20 remains in the media limelight as the contest here from PPP and GDA platforms is between two Mahar brothers. Ali Gohar Mahar of GDA will face off his brother Ali Nawaz alias Raja Mahar of PPP.

“Ali Gohar Mahar seems to be in a strong position since Mahar tribe is standing with the elder brother,” Buzdar says.

In PS-21, PPP has awarded its ticket to Ali Nawaz Mahar against MMA’s Jam Saifullah Dharejo – a former PPP minister. PTI has fielded Iftikhar Ahmed Loond.

After failing to get PPP ticket in his home constituency, Dharejo went with the MMA. His brother Ikramullah, another former minister, is contesting on the PPP ticket from Sukkur. “This is going to be another tough competition. In 2013, JUI-F candidate got 17,000 votes while Raja Mahar got 54,000 votes on the PPP ticket. With the departure of Saifullah Dharejo from PPP, voters of Peoples Party are also divided. One PPP group is supporting Dharejo while other group is with Mahar,” Buzdar states, adding that Dharejo’s position was strong owing to the MMA support, his personal influence and support of PPP’s disgruntled voters.

District profile: Ghotki lies at the border of Sindh and Punjab provinces. Ghotki city is the headquarter of the district. Prior to its establishment as a district in 1983, it formed part of the Sukkur district. Ghotki is an agriculture district but has several industries located here as well. It has three gas fields: the Mari Gas Field, Qadirpur Gas Field, and Rehmat Gas Field, and is also home to the plants of several fertilizer companies. Cotton is a major crop of the district, with 40 cotton-ginning factories located here. Another valuable crop is sugar cane. There are four sugar mills in Ghotki. The region is also famous for its mangoes, vegetables, and abundance of date trees. Other important agricultural products are wheat, rice, milk etc.

While the majority of the voters here identify as Sindhi and Seraiki speakers, there are Urdu and Punjabi speaking voters here too.

Published in Daily Times, July 13^th 2018.