MULTAN

Although the PML-N rebels succeeded in winning voters' hearts in recent local government election, they failed to catch attention of the party bosses. The PML-N sources claim that the party leadership has decided not to talk to the rebels who have won against party candidates in local government elections.
"The party says that they (the rebels) contested election against party candidates and defeated them. They defied party policy. So, no one will talk to them," sources added while talking to The Nation.
The independents, majority of whom were PML-N's rebels, surfaced as the second largest power after PML-N in Multan district as they won 59 out of 185 Chairman/Vice Chairman seats.
The PML-N got 80 seats while Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) could win just 31 UCs and the PPP 12.
On the other hand, the independents have constituted a group under the banner of Multan Azad Group (Multan independent Group) to exert pressure on PML-N for striking a deal. Over 14 newly-elected independent Chairmen have joined the group and they unanimously constituted a five-member steering committee to hold talks with the PML-N leadership.
The members of the group include Khawaja Suleman Siddiqui, Zahid Adnan Guddu, Rao Mazharul Islam, Haji Rafiq Ahmad, Zahid Khan, Mahmood Ahmad, Saleem Ullah, Siddique Ansari, Rana Amjad Ali and others.
Talking to this scribe, a former PML-N Youth Wing leader and newly-elected chairman in independent capacity Zahid Adnan Guddu, who is also member of steering committee, said that the group had given mandate to the committee to talk to PML-N leadership. "We'll join PML-N for sure and it will be done on invitation of Hamza Shahbaz," he disclosed.
He added that Hamza Shahbaz was in Saudi Arabia for Umrah currently and the group would call on him as soon as he returned.
The PML-N sources, however, rejected Mr Guddu's claim and said that no major party leader would give the group time for meeting.
"This group will disintegrate soon as each member of this group is candidate for deputy mayor post," sources added.
"Although they have formed a group, they also meet with different party leaders individually and request for being taken care of," sources claimed, adding that the members of this group would join PML-N individually. "Each of them will look for his personal references in the party and join PML-N with his reference.
For instance, Zahid Adnan Guddu has a link with Abid Sher Ali so he is likely to join PML-N with his reference," sources added.
The sources also pointed out that the PML-N already possessed simple majority in Multan and thus it did not need support from any other group for the mayoral or Chairman district council election.
The group says that it will promote just one point agenda; Beautify Multan. Khawaja Suleman Siddiqui, another member of the group, told The Nation that the group was determined to end exploitation of elected representatives by the parties.
"We'll not let the coming mayor to use the Chairmen as tissue papers and discard them in the waste bin. We'll play a strong role for the development of this town, ending corruption and eliminating the culture of kickbacks," he stated the manifesto of the group.
He disclosed that nine members of the group had an ideological affiliation with the PML-N, three PPP and two PTI but all of them were willing to join the ruling party.