In Pakistan’s Sindh, four electoral battles that may go down to the wire

Short Url
Updated 28 January 2024
Follow

In Pakistan’s Sindh, four electoral battles that may go down to the wire

  • Last-ditch efforts by candidates to win public support have created a buzz in four hotly contested Sindh constituencies 
  • NA241 Karachi, NA-194 Larkana, NA-246 Karachi and NA-203 Khairpur are expected to see closely fought battles 

KARACHI: As political activity in the country gains steam ahead of national polls on Feb. 8, electoral battles in some constituencies will be more closely fought than in others, with Pakistan’s southern Sindh province being no exception.

Arab News visited four key constituencies in Sindh where multiple political heavyweights will be locking horns and the contest will most definitely go down to the wire. 

NA-241 Karachi 

The NA-241 constituency in Karachi — a city of over 18 million people that is home to Pakistan’s main port, stock exchange and central bank — consists of the upscale Defense Housing Authority (DHA) and Clifton areas, and part of the Old City area. Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) Khurram Sherzaman, Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan’s (MQM-P) Dr. Farooq Sattar, Pakistan Peoples Party’s (PPP) Dr. Ikhtiar Baig and Jamaat-e-Islami’s (JI) Naveed Ali Baig will be locking horns for the National Assembly 241 seat. 




Commuters move past the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) flags hung over a street in Karachi on January 12, 2024, ahead of the upcoming general elections. (AFP)

Pakistan’s incumbent president, PTI’s Dr. Arif Alvi, won NA-241 in the 2013 national elections, securing 76,305 votes, and again in the 2018 election with 91,020 votes, but resigned from the seat after he was nominated for the Pakistani presidency.

After Alvi’s resignation, PTI’s Aftab Siddiqui won the by-election in the constituency with 32,456 votes. In the past, JI’s Abdul Sattar Afghani and MQM’s Khushbakht Shujaat had won the seat in 2002 and 2008 elections, respectively. 

Muzzamil Aslam, a senior PTI member, said the party had a strong position in the constituency despite the election regulator’s move last month to strip the party of the bat election symbol, meaning its candidates now had to contest as independents, each with a different election symbol.

In Pakistan, election symbols appear on ballot papers, with voters able to put a stamp on their symbol of choice. The ballot paper also has names, but over 40 percent of Pakistan’s 241 million population are illiterate, making the pictures extra important for recognition.

A majority of Pakistan’s constituencies are in rural areas where the literacy rate is around 50 percent, according to the economic survey of 2022-23, but in Karachi, a major urban center, PTI leaders hope the loss of the bat symbol won’t be a decisive factor. 




Workers install flags of Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) Party on the rooftop of a building, ahead of the upcoming general elections, in Karachi on January 24, 2024. (AFP)

“The bat has gone, which has diluted the impact, but interestingly, our opponents have not been able to estimate things,” Aslam said, hoping that PTI supporters would once again vote for the party.

Taj Haider, a senior PPP leader, said his party’s candidate had been assured by residents they would vote for the PPP. 

“The people are not happy with the PTI and are now supporting us,” Haider said.
 
Dr. Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, who heads the MQM-P, said the party’s candidate Dr. Farooq Sattar, who has previously served as mayor of Karachi and been elected to the National Assembly multiple times, was the best choice.

“He’s served Karachi many times,” Siddiqui said. “He is one of the most educated and grassroots leaders of the MQM.”

Siddiqui said the MQM-P had a better chance at winning this election than the PTI due to the “conditions” that the PTI had been facing, referring to a crackdown against the party since May last year, when its supporters staged violent demonstrations in the country over Khan’s brief detention in a graft case. The crackdown has seen several senior PTI figures defect, be arrested or go into hiding. Khan is himself currently in jail in a graft case and faces multiple other legal cases in courts across the country.

Still, Nadia Naqi, a Karachi-based analyst, said the MQM-P would face a “challenge” in winning the battle for NA-241. 

“It constitutes the majority of those areas where people have more of a liking for PTI, it has a huge support of PTI, we must not forget that,” she told Arab News. 

“So, I think it will be a lesser challenge to PTI right now and more of a challenge to Farooq Sattar.”

NA-194 Larkana 

The NA-194 constituency is the hometown of the Bhutto dynasty, which has ruled Sindh for decades and given the nation two prime ministers. However, its Pakistan Peoples Party is expected to witness a tough contest here between PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and Rashid Mehmood Soomro, a senior member of the Jamiat Ulama-e-Islam (JUI) religious party. 




Pakistan Peoples' Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari (R) submits his nomination papers to the returning officer in Larkana of Sindh province on December 24, 2023, ahead of the upcoming 2024 general elections. (AFP/File)

Primarily comprising Ratodero Taluka and parts of Larkana Taluka, NA-194 also includes a portion of Larkana city, the hometown of PPP founder and former premier Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. 

In the last election, Bhutto-Zardari won in Larkana with 84,426 votes, while JUI’s Soomro stood second with 50,200 votes. 

The PPP had done its homework and like the previous elections, its candidate would win the election despite the opponents forming an alliance, PPP’s Haider said.

However, Shahzeb Jilani, an analyst who belongs to the same constituency, said the PPP would face tough competition in Larkana, as the JUI candidate had run a formidable campaign against the PPP in 2018 even though the PPP eventually won the election.

“It is certainly not an easy ride for Bilawal Bhutto to win the seat,” he told Arab News. “The only problem in Sindh is that the threshold of opposition is not that high to defeat a [PPP] candidate.”

NA-246 Karachi 

This constituency includes Mominabad town and parts of Karachi West district and will be hotly contested between JI Karachi chief Naeem-ur-Rehman and MQM-P’s Ameenul Haque, a former federal minister for IT. 




A billboard of Pakistan People's Party (PPP) featuring their leader Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, along a road in Karachi on January 12, 2024, ahead of the upcoming general elections. (AFP)

In 2002, MQM’s Muhammad Abdul Rauf Siddiqui won this seat with 62,690 votes, while Dr. Abdul Qadir Khanzada was the winner in 2008. In 2013, MQM’s Mehboob Alam emerged victorious in the constituency with 166,836 votes, whereas Haque won the seat in 2018 by defeating PTI’s Muhammad Aslam and JI’s candidate secured third position with 21,812 votes. 

“The MQM will completely sweep and there has never been a challenge for the MQM [in NA-246],” MQM-P chief Siddiqui said, adding that the seat had consistently been won by his party since 1980s. 

Rehman said the JI was a better option as it had spoken up for the resolution of various public issues in Karachi in recent months.

“No one else held their hand but the Jamaat-e-Islami resolved 80 percent of their issues,” he said. 

Naqi agreed that Rehman was a candidate who had been highlighting Karachi’s issues, including of electricity and gas tariff hikes, issuance of national identity cards and water shortage. 

“Jamaat-e-Islami, in that manner, has had a very good presence in terms of connecting with the people,” she said. “If he really loses that seat, then there’s something that is wrong, the Jamaat e Islami has to put that right ingredient. And if the MQM really wins that seat, we’ll have to see the margin also.” 

NA-203 Khairpur 

The Pakistan Muslim League-Functional’s (PMLF) Pir Sadaruddin Shah consistently won the seat in the 2002, 2008, and 2013 general elections with 63,520, 97,347, and 86,982 votes, respectively. However, PPP’s Pir Syed Fazal Ali Shah Jilani defeated Shah by bagging 95,972 votes in the last election in 2018. 




Pakistan Peoples' Party (PPP) chairman and Prime Ministerial candidate Bilawal Bhutto Zardari waves toward supporters during a campaign rally for the 2024 general elections in Khairpur in Sindh province on January 14, 2024. (AFP/File)

They will now be facing off against each other again. 

“This seat originally belongs to us and we will reclaim it,” said Sardar Raheem, PML-F’s general secretary. 

But Jilani, the analyst, said the PPP had been seen consolidating its position in constituencies where it did not win previously. 

“For Sadruddin Rashidi, he’s been winning that seat because they have their own set of spiritual followers,” he said, adding that Fazal banked on the PPP vote and his own planning to win the seat in the last election and he would be trying to pull the same feat once again.


Pakistan invites Japan to join mineral sector drive through joint ventures, value addition

Updated 10 sec ago
Follow

Pakistan invites Japan to join mineral sector drive through joint ventures, value addition

  • Commerce minister Jam Kamal says Japan can help build sustainable supply chains for critical minerals
  • He says Islamabad sees Japan not only as a partner but as a catalyst for transforming Pakistan’s economy

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has invited Japan to invest in its minerals sector through joint ventures focused on exploration, processing and value addition, with commerce minister, Jam Kamal, holding high-level meetings in Tokyo this week, the government said in a statement on Thursday.

The outreach is part of Pakistan’s broader push to attract foreign investment and strengthen its struggling economy. Islamabad has prioritized mining and minerals as a key sector for economic diversification, and is seeking Japanese collaboration to unlock its untapped resource potential while aligning with Tokyo’s industrial needs.

“Our mineral sector remains largely underexplored,” Kamal said during meetings with officials from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) and the Japan–Pakistan Business Cooperation Committee (JPBCC).

“We are offering Japanese partners the opportunity to participate in high-value ventures that can help build sustainable supply chains for critical minerals,” he added.

The minister highlighted reserves of rare earth elements like copper, gold and other industrial minerals, positioning Pakistan as a strategic destination for resource-based cooperation.

He emphasized Pakistan’s openness to technology transfer, public-private partnerships and long-term frameworks that support mutual gains.

In his conversation with JICA’s Senior Vice President HARA Shohei, Kamal underlined the importance of aligning future development cooperation with Pakistan’s industrial modernization and export-oriented growth.

He acknowledged Japan’s long-standing contribution of over $11 billion in areas such as energy, transport and vocational training, and called for expanded technical assistance in mineral logistics, industrial clusters and green technologies.

Meeting JETRO President Susumu Kataoka and Executive Vice President Kazuya Nakajo, the minister urged greater Japanese investment in Pakistan’s Special Economic Zones and export-oriented sectors.

He called on JETRO to promote Pakistan’s mineral sector to Japanese industry through seminars, business-to-business (B2B) outreach, and participation in trade exhibitions.

At a luncheon hosted by JPBCC, Kamal encouraged deeper B2B ties and sought active Japanese input for the upcoming Pakistan-Japan Business Dialogue.

“Our doors are open,” he said. “We see Japan not only as a partner but as a catalyst for transforming Pakistan’s economic base. With your advanced technology and our resource potential, we can build future-proof industries together.”

Pakistan has in recent years stepped up its diplomatic engagement with key economic partners to promote sectors such as information technology, light engineering and mineral development.

The Tokyo visit marks a fresh attempt to align its resource-led ambitions with Japan’s technological strengths and global supply chain priorities.


Pakistan PM arrives in Tajikistan on final leg of five-day regional diplomacy tour

Updated 29 May 2025
Follow

Pakistan PM arrives in Tajikistan on final leg of five-day regional diplomacy tour

  • The tour earlier took him to Türkiye, Iran and Azerbaijan after a military confrontation with India
  • In Tajikistan, Sharif will attend a glacier conference, present Pakistan’s stance on climate change

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif arrived in Tajikistan’s capital Dushanbe on Thursday, the final stop in a five-day regional diplomacy tour that earlier took him to Türkiye, Iran and Azerbaijan, following a recent military confrontation with archrival India.

The tour has seen Sharif engage with regional allies to reaffirm diplomatic ties and economic cooperation, while also garnering support in the wake of heightened tensions with India.

Sharif was received at the Dushanbe airport by Tajik Prime Minister Qohir Rasulzoda.

“Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif has arrived in Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan, on a two-day visit,” his office said in a statement.

“During the visit, he will hold a bilateral meeting with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon to discuss cooperation in various sectors and thank the Tajik leader for his strong support during the recent India-Pakistan tensions,” it continued.

Earlier in the day, Sharif concluded his visit to Azerbaijan, where he announced that the Azeri leadership had reaffirmed plans to invest $2 billion in Pakistan and deepen collaboration in commerce, defense, education and health.

On Wednesday, Sharif attended a trilateral summit in the Lachin district with Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The three leaders pledged to expand cooperation and turn their longstanding fraternal ties into a strategic partnership for regional prosperity.

During his previous stops, Sharif also met Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Tehran to discuss trade, energy and regional connectivity. In Türkiye, from where he kicked off his regional tour, the Pakistani prime minister held talks with Erdoğan on defense, infrastructure and intelligence cooperation.

Pakistan has long sought to strengthen ties with landlocked Central Asian nations by offering them access to its Arabian Sea ports, part of its broader push for regional connectivity and economic integration.

The Prime Minister’s Office said in its statement Sharif will also participate in a high-level international conference on glacier preservation in Tajikistan, where he is expected to brief participants on the impact of climate change on Pakistan and reaffirm the country’s commitment to environmental protection.
 


Two police officers, four Pakistani Taliban killed in rare raid in Azad Kashmir

Updated 29 May 2025
Follow

Two police officers, four Pakistani Taliban killed in rare raid in Azad Kashmir

  • While security forces frequently target TTP hideouts in restive northwest and elsewhere, such operations in Kashmir are rare
  • Police chief says TTP is acting as a proxy for India, New Delhi has not responded to the accusation

MUZAFFARABAD, Pakistan: Security forces acting on intelligence raided a militant hideout in Azad Kashmir, triggering a shootout that left two police officers and four Pakistani Taliban fighters dead, police said Thursday.

The rare overnight raid was carried out in the Rawalakot district, according to Abdul Jabbar, the police chief in Kashmir, which is split between Pakistan and India and claimed in full by both countries in its entirety.

Jabbar said the killed militants were members of the Pakistani Taliban, who are known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP and are allies of the Afghan Taliban. He alleged the TTP is acting as a proxy for India and said police thwarted an attempt by the insurgents to create a base for future attacks.

There was no immediate response from New Delhi.

While Pakistani security forces frequently target TTP hideouts in the restive northwest and elsewhere, such operations in Kashmir are rare. TTP is a separate group and has been emboldened since the Afghan Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021.

Many TTP leaders and fighters have since found sanctuary in Afghanistan.


Over 36 million children vaccinated as Pakistan anti-polio campaign enters fourth day

Updated 29 May 2025
Follow

Over 36 million children vaccinated as Pakistan anti-polio campaign enters fourth day

  • Health officials have confirmed 10 polio cases in Pakistan his year
  • Pakistan, Afghanistan are only countries where polio remains endemic

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has vaccinated approximately 36.4 million children as the third nationwide polio vaccination campaign of the year entered its fourth day today, Thursday, the country’s polio program said.

Around 400,000 frontline workers, including 225,000 women vaccinators, are driving the campaign launched on Monday to vaccinate 45 million children under the age of five. The drive will conclude on June 1. 

Polio is a paralyzing disease with no cure. Multiple doses of the oral polio vaccine, along with the completion of the routine immunization schedule for all children, are essential to ensure strong immunity against the disease.

Pakistan and Afghanistan are the last two countries in the world where polio remains endemic. Pakistan has reported 10 polio cases so far this year, compared to 74 cases in 2024.

“In the first three days, 81 percent of (45 million) children across the country have been vaccinated,” the National Emergency Operations Center (NEOC) said in a statement.

“85 percent in Punjab, 68 percent in Sindh, 86 percent in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and 74 percent of children in Balochistan have been vaccinated.”

The report said 63 percent of children were administered polio drops in the federal capital, Islamabad, 93 percent in Azad Jammu and Kashmir and 91 percent in Gilgit-Baltistan.

In the early 1990s, Pakistan reported around 20,000 polio cases annually but in 2018 the number dropped to eight cases. Six cases were reported in 2023 and only one in 2021. 

Pakistan’s polio program began in 1994, but efforts to eradicate the virus have been repeatedly undermined by vaccine misinformation and resistance from some religious hard-liners who claim that immunization is a foreign plot to sterilize Muslim children or a cover for Western espionage.

Militant groups have also frequently targeted polio vaccination teams and the security personnel assigned to protect them, often resulting in deadly attacks.

A Pakistani police officer was killed earlier this week when gunmen opened fire on a team of health workers carrying out a polio vaccination drive in the volatile Balochistan province on the second day of a door-to-door campaign.


Pakistan army launches teachers’ awareness program on online ‘anti-state’ propaganda

Updated 29 May 2025
Follow

Pakistan army launches teachers’ awareness program on online ‘anti-state’ propaganda

  • 1,950 teachers from various regions of the country participate in Hilal Talks 2025 program run by army’s media wing
  • After latest military combat, social media citizens on both sides are vying to control narrative by peddling disinformation

ISLAMABAD: In a first, the Pakistan army’s media wing has launched the Hilal Talks 2025 program to raise awareness among Pakistani teachers about the “tactics and nefarious agendas of anti-state elements” on social media, Radio Pakistan reported on Thursday. 

While India and Pakistan announced a ceasefire after coming close to an all-out conflict earlier this month, social media citizens on both sides are vying to control public perceptions by peddling disinformation.

Platforms such as Facebook and X are still awash with misrepresented footage of the attacks that killed at least 70 people and sent thousands fleeing from their shared de facto Line of Control (LoC) border.

“Hilal Talks 2025 program has been launched under the auspices of ISPR,” Radio Pakistan reported, saying 1,950 teachers from various regions of the country were participating in the program run by the army’s media wing. 

“It is aimed at raising awareness about the tactics and nefarious agendas of anti-state elements on social media.”

The report said teachers “got the opportunity to understand the structure, role and working mechanism of Pakistan Army more closely.”

Indian and Pakistani media outlets have both amplified misinformation, including false or unverifiable claims of military victories that experts say have exacerbated tensions and contributed to a flood of hate speech.

Disinformation peaked when India launched deadly air strikes on May 7 targeting “terrorist camps” in Pakistan, two weeks after a deadly attack on the Indian-administered side of disputed Kashmir.

New Delhi blames Islamabad for backing the April 22 attack near the tourist town of Pahalgam, which killed 26 people — almost all of them Hindu men. Pakistan denies the claim.

After the first round of Indian air strikes, the Pakistani military shared footage that had previously circulated in reports about a 2023 Israeli air strike in Gaza. The clip quickly appeared on television and social media but was later retracted by numerous media outlets, including AFP.

AI-generated imagery has also muddied the waters, including a video that purportedly shows a Pakistan Army general saying the country lost two of its aircraft. AFP fact-checkers found the clip was altered from a 2024 press conference.

Both India and Pakistan have taken advantage of the information vacuum to raise alarm bells and promote their own claims and counter-claims.

Pakistan appears to have lifted a more than one-year-old ban on X the same day of the Indian strikes.

Pakistan’s National Cyber Emergency Response Team (NCERT) on May 8 issued an alert about “increased cyberattacks and misinformation via emails, social media, QR codes, and messaging apps.”

Both Pakistan’s Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Karachi Port Trust later said their X accounts had been hacked.

A post from the latter account said the port — one of South Asia’s busiest — was attacked by the Indian military. The page was later restored and the port authority said no attack had taken place.

India, meanwhile, has executed a sweeping crackdown targeting the social media accounts of Pakistani politicians, celebrities and media organizations.

The government ordered X to block more than 8,000 accounts and banned more than a dozen Pakistani YouTube channels for allegedly spreading “provocative” content, including news outlets.

Press Information Bureau (PIB) Fact Check, a government-run website, has also refuted more than 60 claims about the ongoing crisis, many having to do with supposed Pakistani military victories.

The avalanche of disinformation online has also been accompanied by a spike in hate speech offline.

With inputs from AFP