THE Pakistan Peoples Party that has been in ascendancy in the politics of Dadu since it swept the 2008 general elections on a sympathy wave following the assassination of party chairperson Benazir Bhutto may have to struggle to retain two national and four provincial assembly seats in the district in the Feb 8 polls after influential Jatois’ joined the Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) while certain disgruntled PPP leaders refused to pull out of the electoral race despite failing to obtain party tickets.

A total of 99 candidates, including 49 independents, are vying for the two NA seats — NA-227 (Dadu-I), NA-228 (Dadu-II) — and four PA seats — PS-80 (Khairpur Nathan Shah), PS-81 (Dadu-II, Mehar), PS-82 (Dadu-III) and PS-83 (Dadu-IV, Johi).

The PPP had won all seats in the district in the 2008, 2013 and 2018 elections. However, this time round it may be difficult for the party to sweep the Feb 8 polls for a number of factors.

On NA-227 (Dadu-I, Mehar-K.N. Shah), a total of 19 contestants, including eight independent candidates, are in the run but the real fight is expected between GDA’s Liaquat Ali Jatoi and PPP’s Irfan Zaffar Leghari. The Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) and Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) also fielded their candidates.

The PPP’s position has scaled down in Mehar and K.N. Shah talukas in the wake of the 2022 devastating flood. The party chairman, Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, had himself visited the district recently and addressed a public gathering at Mehar bypass a day ago to revive the party’s fortunes.

From 2000 to 2008, the district had been in the tight hold of former Sindh chief minister Liaquat Jatoi, who had been associated with the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), but later joined the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) only to part ways with it a couple of years ago to join the GDA.

Besides NA-227, Liaquat Jatoi is also contesting the Feb 8 general elections from PS-81 (Dadu-II, Mehar) from the platform of the GDA against PPP’s Fayaz Ahmed Butt and 15 others, including seven independent.

Mr Jatoi told Dawn that Feb 8 would prove to be a day of victory for the GDA despite all odds.

From PS-80 (K.N. Shah), Liaquat’s son Karim Ali Jatoi is also a candidate of GDA. He is competing against PPP’s Aziz Junejo and 11 others, five of them are contesting as independent candidates. The Tehreek Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), Jamiat Ulema-i-Pakistan (JUP), Pakistan Markazi Muslim League, MQM-P and the JI have also fielded their respective candidates.

The GDA has seen its position strengthened in the district after a number of local PPP leaders and supporters like Rais Shahnawaz Gadehi, Raees Mashooq Gadehi and Rais Muneer Khan Khunharo jumped ship and went over to the alliance. The support base of the PPP candidate Aziz Junejo had suffered seriously as his illness kept him away from his voters during the 2022 floods. He remained out of touch with his area for a long time, giving an opportunity to his rival Karim Jatoi to capitalise on his absence and garner support for himself.

The PPP leadership is visibly struggling to contain the GDA candidates in the two talukas and stop them from clinching PS-81 and NA-227.

On PS-82, there are a total of 21 contestants, including 15 independents. The major showdown is expected between PPP’s Barrister Pir Mujeebul Haq, son of senior party leader Pir Mazharul Haq, and GDA’s Sardar Ashiq Ali Zounr.

The Pir family has been retaining the seat since the 1988 general elections.

20 in the run on NA-228

On NA-228, PPP district president Sardar Rafiq Ahmed Jamali is contesting against GDA’s Karim Jatoi.

Although the PPP had been winning this seat since 1988, this time round it will have to face a tougher contest in the changed conditions after the GDA’s entry.

Sardar Jamali, however, claimed that Dadu district had been a fort of the PPP and it would remain so in the general election 2024.

As many as 20 candidates are fighting it out for PS-83 and of them 14 are independent though the major contest is anticipated between PPP’s Syed Mohammad Salih Shah, GDA’s Imdad Leghari and independent candidates, Dr Bandeh Ali Leghari and Sardar Yasir Babbar.

Babbar had parted ways with the PPP and joined the PML-N but he was deprived of the ticket as the party had supported GDA’s Imdad Leghari as part of an electoral pact between the two parties. Hence, Babbar entered the contest as an independent candidate.

Dr Bandeh Leghari, a former adviser to Sindh chief minister, had applied for a PPP ticket but the party gave it to Salih Shah, who also enjoys support of former Sindh chief minister Syed Murad Ali Shah.

Dr Leghari is the chieftain of his tribe and is considered close to the PPP district president Jamali. Both Leghari and Babbar have a considerable number of votes in Johi taluka and both can spoil results for the PPP candidates as independent contestants.

Two other independent candidates — Sardar Chakar Khan Shahani and Sardar Qadir Bux Bozdar — recently withdrew from the race in favour of PPP’s candidate after they were persuaded to do so by the former CM Murad Ali Shah.

Published in Dawn, January 25th, 2024