The MQM’s reunification strategy has worked. The Sindh government has accepted its demand to redraw constituency boundaries and postponed local government elections for Karachi, Hyderabad and Dadu Sunday, it emerged late Thursday night.

Following the late-night developments, the Election Commission of Pakistan has convened an emergency meeting where Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja and other members will decide whether they should accept the Sindh government’s decision or overrule it.

The Jamaat-e-Islami has announced it will be holding a protest demonstration outside the Election Commission of Pakistan office in Karachi at 3pm.

The provincial cabinet met to decide MQMP demands and other polls-related issues Thursday night, after which Minister for Information Sharjeel Memon held a press conference to announce that they could not hold elections in Dadu because of the flood. But also, as the MQM had objections to the constituencies (delimitation), the Sindh government wants to take the demands of its allies seriously. The boundaries of constituencies will be redrawn. The cabinet will meet again Friday.

Just hours earlier, all the big names of the MQM held a press conference in which Mustafa Kamal and Dr. Farooq Sattar declared they were joining MQM Pakistan. Their demand was that constituency boundaries be fixed before local body elections are held. The complaint is that there has been gerrymandering to give rivals an upper hand.

After that, the Sindh government’s Local Government and Housing and Town Planning department sent a letter to the provincial election commission asking for the election to be put off in Karachi, Hyderabad, Dadu.

It was this letter that is being discussed at the ECP meeting in Islamabad under CEC Raja.

The letter says:

• Municipal elections should not be held in Karachi, Hyderabad
• Constituencies are abolished under Section 10A
• The Sindh Cabinet has approved the withdrawal of the notification of delimitations
• The Sindh Cabinet sub-committee will issue a notification on new constituencies
• Municipal elections are not possible in Dadu as there is still flooding in Mehar, Khairpur, Nathan Shah talukas
• The Sindh Cabinet has also considered a threat alert, security situation. Fears have increased due to lack of security by law enforcement agencies.

Other than the CEC and the election commission members the meeting is being attended by the director general law and the director general local governments. They will outline the legal and constitution position of the Sindh government letter in view of recent court judgments in favour of holding LG elections.

PTI to protest

The PTI has urged the people to join the party in its protest outside the Sindh Assembly today (Friday) at 4pm.

“They [PPP and MQM] are running away from elections,” Ali said, along with former Sindh governor Imran Ismail, while addressing a press conference on Friday. “There is a need for accepting public mandate in Pakistan, not political engineering.”

Earlier, the party said that it would protest against the postponement of the local body elections from Saturday. Due to the match between Pakistan and New Zealand on Friday, it will do this from Saturday, said Ali Zaidi, the party’s Sindh president.

“They have again tried to steal your mandate so I urge everyone to gather outside the Sindh Assembly to protest against this decision.”

Jamaat-e-Islami to stage sit-in outside ECP office

The Jamaat-e-Islami has announced its decision to stage a sit-in outside the ECP Office at 3pm after Friday prayers in Karachi.

“The next plan would be announced after the sit-in. [LG] elections will be held on January 15 and the Jamaat-e-Islami will win it,” Jamaat-e-Islami Karachi Ameer Hafiz Naeemur Rehman said in a press conference on Friday.

He accused the MQM of always becoming a “facilitator” of the PPP as it contended why the party had not raised the issue when the Sindh-ruling party was seeking their support for ousting Imran Khan from the prime minister seat.

Rehman was of the view that Chief Election Commissioner Sikander Sultan Raja has the prerogative to take suo motu on the Sindh cabinet’s decision. “Our demand is that the ECP should throw away their letter and take action against the provincial cabinet.

Last night, he released a video message on the postponement saying that they would announce their plan in the morning.

It will go to the Election Commission and court if need be. Protests and rallies will be held across the city against this decision.