LARKANA, March 31: With Sardar Rizwan Kehar of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Nazeer Ahmed Shaikh of the Pakistan Muslim League-Functional (PML-F) opting for PS-36 (Larkana-II) seat in forthcoming election, it has become a triangular fight as Sindh Assembly Speaker Nisar Ahmed Khuhro is already in the field on a Pakistan People’s Party ticket.

Although the PPP had won the 2002 and 2008 elections in its stronghold — Larkana —, it is likely to face a tough contest this time. The PML-F candidate, Mr Shaikh, is a former PPP general secretary in Larkana and has also remained the taluka nazim. He has recently deserted the party to join the PML-F. PPP information secretary in the district Asghar Shaikh also quit the party.

Interestingly, it was Mr Khuhro who had introduced [Nazeer Ahmed] Shaikh to the PPP in a meeting with Benazir Bhutto.

The Shaikh community claims to be the deciding factor in elections for Larkana constituencies but at the moment it stands visibly divided into four groups, one of which is led by Nazeer Shaikh.

The other three groups are led by Khair Mohammed Shaikh, PPP Larkana district vice president, Mohammed Ali Shaikh, associated with the PML-F and Ghulam Serwar Shaikh, head of the recently-formed Muttahida Shaikh Political Forum.

In terms of strength, the Shaikh community has around 24,000 voters registered within NA-204 and PS-36. According to Ghulam Serwar Shaikh, Akbar Shah Rashdi (Larkana division president) of the PML-F, Nazeer Ahmed Shaikh of PML-F and Rizwan Kehar, a PML-N candidate, have sought the forum’s support.

An anti-PPP electoral alliance formed by or supported by both PML-N and PML-F could pose some sort of challenge to PPP but Mr Khuhro seems confident about his victory even in such a serious situation.

PPP has now developed fissures. While its Larkana city chief Aftab Nek Mohammed Bhutto and his close associates remained with Mr Khuhro but Khair Mohammed Shaikh, PPP Larkana vice president stood by Ayaz Soomro. Some PPP office-bearers in the recent past had observed a hunger strike for removal of certain district and city leaders.

Khair Mohammed Shaikh remained the party’s vice president over the past five years and sought the ticket for PS-36 (Larkana-II) but he did not succeed.

In the 2002 election for the PS-36 Larkana-II seat, Mr Khuhro who had defeated two prominent candidates, Saeed Ahmed Bhutto (PPP-SB) and Javed Ahmed Mithani (PML-Q).

In the 2008 election he again defeated Javed Mithani (who contested the seat from the platform of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement) and Altaf Hussain Ansari of PML-Q.