THATTA: The Shirazi group, believed to be a strong political force in Thatta and Sujawal districts that is currently affiliated with the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), took out two big rallies on Monday apparently to match the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP)’s impressive show of strength held in the area a day earlier.

Taking along its electoral ally, the Jam Ittehad, the Shirazi group managed to draw thousands of people to send a strong message to the rival PPP that it would not be allowed a smooth sailing in the Nov 19 local government election.

Syed Aijaz Ali Shah Shirazi, vying for the chairmanship of the Thatta district council, led a rally of several hundred vehicles carrying local candidates, local leaders, activists and supporters that passed through the streets of Makli, Gujjo, Gharo, Mirpur Sakro, Baghan and other towns of Thatta, besides the city.

Syed Riaz Hussain Shah Shirazi and Jam Ittehad leader Jam Owais Gohram accompanied him.

The leaders spoke to the participants at many places where the rally turned into a public meeting.

Aijaz Shirazi seeking vote for his group’s candidates, alleged that the PPP had been misleading the masses during its tenures, arguing that it failed to bring about any improvement in the standard of life of the down-trodden fishermen and peasant families living along the coastal areas and other parts of the two district.

He said the PPP had stopped serving the masses long ago.

Riaz Shirazi and Jam Gohram alleged that the present PPP leadership only promoted corruption and corrupt people, who were grabbing state lands and poor haris’ ancestral lands.

“We will not allow the ‘Qabza mafia’ to take over the LGs and continue with its loot, plunder and other corrupt practices in Thatta and Sujawal districts,” they said.

The other rally was taken out from Saeedpur — the ancestral village of Syed Shafqat Shah Shirazi, who heads the group.

Shafqat Shirazi, MNA Syed Ayaz Ali Shah Shirazi, MPA Shah Hussain Shah and Muhammad Otho addressed the participants at Sujawal, Darri Mori, Churraitani and Mirpur Bathoro and vowed to hand a humiliating defeat to PPP candidates in the forthcoming LG elections.

“The days of PPP are numbered,” they said, and alleged that the current PPP leadership had betrayed the Bhuttos who rendered great sacrifices for democracy and people of Pakistan. “That’s why the PPP has now been restricted to small pockets of Sindh, they claimed.

They said the masses were now fully aware of those who had plundered the national exchequer and provincial kitty and did not deliver when they were in power.

The rally ended in Darro town.

Published in Dawn, November 17th, 2015