LARKANA, March 18: The Pakistan People’s Party is most likely to award tickets to the same candidates for NA-205 (Larkana-II) and PS-41 (Larkana (VII) except PS-35 (Larkana-I) for which a former bitter foe of the party who lately joined PPP, Haji Altaf Hussain Unnar, is a strong contender.

Mr Unnar, a former provincial minister and leader of the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid, was roped in by PPP leader and provincial minister Agha Siraj Durrani with the blessings of President Asif Ali Zardari.

His entry must have perturbed incumbent MPA Ghulam Serwar Khan Siyal and his supporters. Mr Siyal had defeated Mr Unnar in the 2008 general elections by securing 31,962 votes in PS-35. Mr Unnar had obtained 18,672 votes. But now the rivals have been made to sit in the same boat, anxiously waiting for the party decision over the ticket for upcoming elections.

Although Mr Unnar had been a bitter PPP opponent who was never in the good books of Mr Zardari, the fact that he and his group remained undefeated in the 2005 local government elections despite all odds won him appreciation and he was invited to join the PPP’s fold.

Mr Unnar had single-handedly propelled his favourite candidate, Mohammed Bakhsh Aarijo, to win office of district nazim Larkana by defeating PPP’s nominee in the district which is considered a stronghold of the party.

Immediately afterwards, Mr Unnar fell ill and went abroad still the PPP could not influence even a single member of his group in the district council, which spoke volumes for his wily tactics aimed at keeping the PPP at bay. Perhaps it was one of the major reasons the PPP leadership courted defeat and decided to cash in on his influence in Bakrani taluka.

In the recent past, Mr Unnar had differences with the Siyals of Faridabad and the Bughios of Gud who had managed to win National Assembly seat in every election. Nazeer Ahmed Bughio had won NA-205 (Larkana-II) in the 2008 elections. The seat was earlier won by his brother Hizbullah Bughio in the 2002 elections. PPP’s Siyals had been at daggers drawn with Mr Unnar for years. But after having learnt the tricks of the trade, Mr Unnar made calculated moves and succeeded in befriending his rivals.

He befriended the Bughios and the Siyals by visiting their villages which earned him wide support and an increase in the powerbase. Whether it will remain so or not is to be seen in upcoming elections.

Mr Unnar has applied for the party ticket for NA-205 and PS-35, said sources in the PPP. But, according to sources close to his circle, Mr Unnar was planning to field his son, Adil Unnar, for the provincial assembly seat.

Suhail Siyal was also aspiring for PS-35 (Larkana-I) to replace his close relative Ghulam Serwar Siyal while Nazeer Ahmed Bughio and Hizbullah Bughio had applied for party ticket for NA-205, said Khair Mohammad Shaikh, vice-president of the PPP Larkana district.

If the Siyals raised obstacles to Mr Unnar’s plans by claiming seniority in the party then he would surely not have an easy sail on the provincial assembly seat. But the fact that the PPP leadership had not cared much about the Siyals’ opposition to his joining the party can lessen his difficulties.

However, internal rifts in the Unnar family, between Haji Altaf Hussain Unnar and his nephew Haji Shafqat Hussain Unnar, will surely affect the outcome of the elections.

Shafqat Hussain who was once an ardent supporter of former foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has recently joined the Pakistan Muslim League-Functional.

Young and energetic, Shafqat Hussain, who is president of PML-F Larkana district, has an independent position and does not rely much on Altaf Hussain Unnar. He is likely to contest for PS-35 against PPP’s nominee, who may be his uncle or cousin.

He can cash in on the Siyals’ sense of deprivation who feel sidelined to muster support against his rival PPP candidate. He is, however, trying his best to develop a dent in the influence of Altaf Hussain Unnar who has gathered more power after former federal minister Ghous Bakhsh Mahar recently settled a seething row between him and his close relative Allah Bakhsh aka Dado Unnar.

Another claimant to the PS-35 is Mashooque Jatoi, a local PPP leader, who justifies his demand for the seat by claiming that a large number of registered voters in the constituency belong to the Jatoi clan.

The issue of awarding PPP’s ticket for PS-41 (Larkana-VII) to incumbent MPA Aziz Jatoi was discussed by the party’s leadership who were concerned about protests against his poor performance. Aziz had applied again for the party ticket for PS-41, said Khair Muhammed Shaikh, vice-president of the PPP Larkana district.

In the 2002 elections, Hizbullah Bughio of the PPP had secured 45,097 votes to win NA-205 (Larkana-II) while his opponent Haji Altaf Hussain Unnar of PML-Q had secured 44,473 votes. PPP candidate had won with a small margin of 624 votes, which speaks volumes for Mr Unnar’s influence in the constituency.

Now that Mr Unnar has ironed out differences with the Bughios, it is believed they will support each other on a reciprocal basis during elections.

In 2002 elections, Mr Unnar had obtained 24,358 votes for PS-35 and his rival Ghulam Serwar Siyal of the PPP had secured 19,260 votes. Turnout of voters was recorded at 36 per cent. PPP candidate Aziz Ahmed Jatoi had obtained 21,852 votes for PS-41 and his rival Allah Bakhsh Unnar of the PML-Q had secured 19,139 votes.

The 2008 elections held in the wake of assassination of Benazir Bhutto caused a sudden surge in votes and PPP candidate Nazir Ahmed Bughio swept to victory over PS-35 by securing 72,928 votes while his rival Altaf Hussain Unnar of PML-Q (now in PPP) could get 25,847 votes.

Aziz Ahmed Jatoi of PPP got 37,661 votes and returned winner for PS-41 by defeating Abdul Ghaffar Brohi of PML-Q who obtained only 6,485 votes in 2008 elections.

The question is: is it possible under obtaining circumstances for the PPP-backed candidates to clinch easy wins in upcoming elections? If people’s opinions are to be considered, they have bleak prospects for victory.

There is a seething rage among the party’s lower cadre and supporters over discrimination in jobs and development schemes as well as promulgation of the Sindh People’s Local Government Act, 2012 which has greatly tarnished the party’s image.

The 11th hour change of loyalties, particularly formation of local alliances, and covert support to anti-PPP candidates may change outcome of elections. PPP candidates may again win seats but not so easily this time.