GUJRAT: Cracks have appeared in the Shaheen Group which has been ruling the Gujrat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GTCCI) for long as some of its key members, belonging to the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf, have quit it over, what they termed, the group head’s move of making the GTCCI a platform of the PML-N instead of keeping it a non-political organisation.

Apparently, some leaders of the group were annoyed over the display of their photos on the billboards erected on different city roads, showing PTI local leader Afzal Gondal along with federal minister Khwaja Saad Rafique.

It is pertinent to mention Shaheen Group’s President Haji Nasir Mahmood, uncle of the PML-N lawmaker from Gujrat, remained district secretary general of the PML-N in Gujrat and he held his grip very strongly in the chamber affairs in the last one decade.

As Mr Gondal was the PTI’s candidate from NA-105 in 2013 general elections and had been waging struggle against the PML-N government, he also termed his projection on billboards with Saad Rafique a move to damage his politics.

The unity of Shaheen Group seems to be in danger of split for the first time since 1998 as the disgruntled leaders have pledged to launch a new group of the business community in the next elections of the GTCCI to be held in Sept 2015.

Another senior member of the group, Muhammad Shafique, a former member of the executive committee of the GTCCI, has also lodged a strong protest in a statement issued here by saying that the PML-N had made the chamber as its political wing instead of keeping it away from the political parties.

Mr Shafique, who also belongs to the PTI, vowed to get the GTCCI liberated from the clutches of the PML-N leaders to make the chamber a reasonable forum for the business community.

The tug-of-war between the main stream political parties of the country have now started gripping the local business forums as some young people riding motorbikes had appeared on the road passing through the venue of the GTCCI’s annual general meeting on Saturday and raised slogans of “Go Nawaz Go” during the speech of federal minister Saad Rafique.

ARRESTED: Dinga police claimed on Monday to have found a clue to the blind murder of a youth and arrested a suspect.

Police also recovered the body of Abul Hasnain on the indication of the arrested suspect.

District Police Officer Rai Ijaz told Dawn that Abul Hasnain was kidnapped along with his motorcycle rickshaw a few days back. He said police arrested Zahoor alias Zahoora who had allegedly shot the youth dead and sold his rickshaw in Jhelum district.

The DPO said police had recovered the body on his indication.

He announced cash prizes and commendation certificates for the police party.

Published in Dawn, September 30th , 2014