KARACHI, July 16: Local government election in Sindh is likely to be held in November, said Sindh Local Government Minister Agha Siraj Durrani on Monday after a meeting of the core committee of the Pakistan People’s Party and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement.

The meeting deliberated on the future local government system in the province.

Mr Durrani told the media that he wanted to see the local government election in October and made all-out efforts for that, but it did not seem happening even if the progress of deliberations on different sections of the Local Government Act, 2010 continued at the same pace and the core committee kept meeting daily over the next week or so.

The general election process could be initiated in the country after the local government election if the federal government felt its need, he said. The PPP had a mandate up to March 2013 after which general election would have to be conducted within 90 days, said the minister in reply to a question.

Mr Durrani said the talks were aimed at taking the MQM into confidence about the future local government system and other allies would also be taken on board afterwards.

Responding to another question, he said it was his desire that the designation of nazim in the city local government system be replaced with mayor.

In reply to yet another question, he said the main reason for anger of nationalists was that they could not win elections and had no representation in the assembly.

Earlier during the meeting held at the Chief Minister’s House, the core committee reviewed in detail different sections of the Sindh Local Government Act, 2010 and reached an agreement on a number of sections.

The representatives of both parties expressed the hope that soon the draft of proposed Sindh Local Government Act, 2012 would be finalised and presented in the assembly for its approval.

The PPP was represented at the meeting by Mr Durrani himself, Syed Murad Ali Shah and Ayaz Soomro and the MQM by Dr Farooq Sattar, Syed Sardar Ahmad, Kanwar Naveed Jamil and Wasay Jalil.