KARACHI: During a corner meeting in Muhammad Khan Goth on Oct 6, the man in charge of the Awami National Party’s election cell, Noorullah Achakzai, announced a bunch of candidates to file papers for the Dec 3 local government elections in Karachi. The 49-year-old was initially looking forward to file nomination papers himself, but he backed off at the last moment fearing “security issues for family members”.

This meeting saw party candidates and members coming from all across Karachi. Being a third one in a row since September, this meeting held a lot of importance for the candidates, because in a way, it is a deciding factor for the fate of ANP in the upcoming LG elections.

Since the announcement of the dates for the LG elections on Sept 25, there has been a lot of activity in Sohrab Goth and nearby areas. The ANP is at the forefront of it at the moment, as it feels the LG elections will bolster its weakening position.

Speaking about the onslaught from the militants before the 2013 general elections, Noorullah said, “We have been politically weakened in areas where we got a lot of votes and earned respect in the past. We were attacked in almost all areas where we had strongholds. We lost around 18 candidates from Sohrab Goth and surrounding areas alone in 2013. They were some of our most active candidates.”

Overlooked by him this time around, the candidates nominated from Karachi’s East district belong to union councils, 27, 28, 29, 30, and 31. At the same time, ANP is looking for seat adjustments, which are going to be made with the Pakistan Peoples Party in Safoora Goth, Majlis-i-Wahdatul Muslimeen in Abbas Town and Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl in different parts of Karachi under ANP’s panel, Khidmatgar, and Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf (PTI).

Explaining the need for these alliances, Noorullah said, “We want to speak on an equal footing with most of these political parties. We recently finished a second round of discussion with the PPP on Oct 5.”

These discussions were based on exchanging candidates in areas such as parts of Safoora Goth and Manghopeer. “Many of our candidates ask why we are opting for the JUI-F, but that’s because they have contacts and command in areas which we were beaten out of in the general elections of 2013 due to the Taliban’s presence and eventual harassment. So, this alliance might help us in gaining back political ground,” Noorullah added.

He, however, added that the “only problem in going with the JUI-F is that their organisational structure is weak as they take candidates from all over Karachi rather utilising their own workers.” Apart from that, the only party they haven’t heard back from, yet, is the PTI.

Noorullah withdrew his nomination papers after filing it earlier from PS-126 in the general elections of 2013. “My six brothers and extended family broke ties with me knowing I’m standing as a political candidate. Their reaction came after a spate of attacks targeted ANP candidates across Karachi. So, knowing that, I kept myself away this time around, but helped the party in choosing the right candidates.”

A few days later, Noorullah’s transport goods shop on Abul Hasan Ispahani Road was attacked. A rickshaw parked near his shop blew up just when a big truck parked right next to it. “My brother, nephew and son were inside the shop but thankfully the blast didn’t hurt them because of the truck that parked right outside our shop. This was the fourth blast that took place after attacks were reported from Metroville, Landhi and Pipri during party gatherings,” he added. That incident put a complete stop to any ambitions that Noorullah harboured about being in the front.

At present, Noorullah looks over the publication of a community newspaper called Sada-e-Pakhtun, which comes out from I I Chundrigar Road and distributed to a select few newsstands across the city. The newspaper includes news about the political activities in Sohrab Goth and surrounding areas. It includes daily news about schools, lack of healthcare facilities in the area among other things. Though the newspaper publishes over 2,000 copies, hardly a few of them are sold in the market, he said.

“This is just the way of keeping the community informed and to make them feel that we are still present and working. It doesn’t work half of the time, but it is an effort I’ll make till I don’t feel like doing it anymore,” he said.

As the fervour for the LG elections is increasing in Muhammad Khan Goth, the ANP is finding itself in a tough spot, he added.

There are political parties, he said, they can ally themselves with and there are those they cannot form partnerships with due to the “party policy and past experiences”.

Since the corner meeting held on Oct 6, many people are hopeful though, Malik Mahmood, a former spokesperson from ANP’s Sohrab Goth chapter, feels. “I parted ways with the party on my own. But I’m helping them out with the local government elections. Things changed a lot since the Rangers-led operation in this area, but we are still cautious,” he added.

Published in Dawn, October 12th, 2015

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