LARKANA: Pakistan Peoples Party Sindh president Senator Nisar Khuhro has said that floor-crossing clause does not apply to independent candidates joining political parties, nor does it affect the contesting parties which will muster support of independents in order to form a government.

He explained that independents were at liberty to join any party or retain their status in the elected houses. Khuhro was addressing several corner meetings in his PS-15 (Mirokhan) constituency on Friday.

He said the floor-crossing clause would apply only to those elected on their party tickets and changed their loyalty in elected houses.

“The candidates who are now contesting as ‘independent’ candidates after Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf lost its electoral symbol of ‘Bat’ in a legal battle would remain ‘independent’ in the eyes of Constitution. If they switch over to any other political party, they would not be affected by the horse-trading clause and even by the disqualification rules of the Election Commission of Pakistan, said Khuhro.

Argues Imran Khan has disowned PTI men contesting as independents, so they can join PPP in elected houses

“Amidst a situation where Imran Khan is disapproved of independent candidates, it’s time for PTI and PML-N workers to support Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, he said.

He said Nawaz Sharif has a track record of fleeing the country and his politics had the typical characteristic of ‘deals’. In contrast to it, he added, PPP’s politics had a track record of sacrifices for the supremacy of Constitution, parliament and democracy. He labelled the alliance of GDA, PML-N, JUI-F and MQM-P a bunch of political parties that had sat together against provincial autonomy and Sindh’s division. He was confident that PPP would win elections in Punjab, besides Sindh, and form a government at the Centre.

PTI Senator Saifullah Abro to support Bilawal on NA-194

In a new development, PTI Senator Saifullah Abro, who hails from Larkana, has extended its support to PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on NA-194 (Larkana-I).

He made the announcement after calling on the PPP chairman in Lahore on Friday. Rauf Korai, former PTI general secretary of the district, confirmed to Dawn that Senator Abro had taken the decision. He said that PTI and PPP would jointly fight against JUI-F general secretary Maulana Rashid Mehmood Soomro on this seat.

Published in Dawn, January 27th, 2024

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