Maulana Fazl to reach Karachi, meet MQM, GDA leaders today

KARACHI: The presidential candidate of opposition parties’ alliance and JUI-F chief Maulana Fazl ur Rahman will arrive in Karachi on Wednesday (today).

Few days before presidential polls, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl chief meetings today with the leaders of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA).

Fazl will meet GDA head Pir Pagara Sibghatullah Shah Rashdi at 5:00 pm today, whereas, his another meeting in the metropolis is fixed with Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui and other MQM leaders at the party’s head office in Bahadurabad, Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) spokesperson Allama Owais Noorani said.

Earlier today, the nomination papers of Fazlur Rehman has been approved by the Election Commission of Pakistan for the presidential elections.

The JUI-F chief has been fielded by the grand alliance of opposition parties except Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) for the presidential election.

Yesterday, a high-level meeting attended by Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) top brass decided not to support PML-N-backed Maulana Fazlur Rehman for upcoming presidential polls.

The meeting chaired by party co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari unanimously decided not to support Fazl and go to the polls with PPP’s own presidential candidate Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan.

Though a member of the opposition alliance named “Alliance for Free and Fair Elections”, the PPP has named Aitzaz Ahsan as their candidate for presidential election despite strong opposition by PML-N.

Fazl had earlier expressed hope that he will persuade the PPP to support him or nominate a joint candidate for the presidential polls who is acceptable for PML-N too as the former ruling party had expressed reservations on Aitzaz’s name.

The electoral college for election of the President of Pakistan, comprises of the National Assembly, Senate and four provincial assemblies.

The presidential election is set to be held on September 4.