LARKANA, Jan 18: Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) co-chairman Asif Zardari said that he would kick-off the party’s election campaign from Punjab after the chehlum of Ms Benazir Bhutto.

He was talking to a delegation from Dera Ghazi Khan that met him in the lead of Sardar Sher Khan Leghari, Rehan Khan Khosa and Saifullah Sodhrani on Friday at Naudero. They offered condolences over the assassination of Ms Benazir Bhutto and invited him (Zardari) to tour the area.

Asif said he would begin PPP’s election campaign from Dera Ghazi Khan, the home town of former President Farooq Leghari, who had inflicted first trauma on democracy.

He said that Ms Benazir Bhutto could have accomplished her political agenda from abroad by addressing on television and telephone as other politicians were doing. But she chose to remain amidst masses to do politics for she had loved her people and the country. It was the height of her unstained commitment to her people, democracy and the country that she was martyred while addressing the people of the country.

A 50-member delegation from Muzaffarabad, Azad Kashmir in the lead of Mohammad Hanif Awan, Member Legislative Assembly AJK, Sardar Jawed Ayub and Shaukat Jawed Mir, former central deputy chief organiser of PPP AJK met Asif Zardari at Naudero and condoled the untimely death of Ms Benazir Bhutto. They also visited Garhi Khuda Bakhsh Bhutto and laid floral wreath on the graves of Z.A.Bhutto and Ms Benazir Bhutto.

Talking to them Asif Zardari said that PPP would continue to advocate a plebiscite in AJK in the light of the UN resolution. He said the mission of Ms Bhutto would be completed adding that PPP was the only party that had roots in all four provinces and AJK. He said PPP would sweep the upcoming elections if held in a fair and free manner.

Meeting with peasants: The PPP co-chairman also held a meeting with the peasants, managers of Bhutto estate at Naudero House and exchanged views about estate affairs on Friday. He asked them to feel free to contact him as they had been cultivating the land since long and had an association with Ms Benazir Bhutto. He later announced waiver of all kinds of loans against them, which ran into millions, the sources told ‘Dawn’ on Friday.

A 40-member delegation of Sindhi Adabi Sangat in the lead of veteran leftist Sobho Gianchandani, Dr Zulfikar Siyal, Secretary General of Sindhi Adabi Sangat, Akhlaq Ansari and Mohammad Ali Pathan met Asif Zardari and offered condolence to him.

They later visited Garhi Khuda Bakhsh Bhutto and laid wreaths on the graves of Z.A.Bhutto and Ms Benazir Bhutto. Delegations from Rahim Yar Khan, Qusoor, Thatta and other areas met Asif and condoled the death of Ms Bhutto.