KARACHI, May 7: Opposition leader in the Senate Mian Raza Rabbani on Friday accused the government of creating hurdles for the Pakistan Peoples Party in the upcoming local bodies’ election through massive pre-poll rigging plans. Addressing a party meeting at Sindh PPP Secretary-General Nafees Siddiqui’s residence he said that removal of PPP-backed nazims and fragmentation of Hyderabad district to undermine PPP vote bank, was part of such a plan to benefit the ruling coalition.

He urged the chief election commissioner to take serious notice of such alleged malpractices. On this occasion Shaikh Alauddin, Nawaz Butt and Azhar Zia joined the PPP.

Mr Rabbani said that the federation and PPP were facing difficult times these days. He said that the PPP was not striving for power but for the restoration of the 1973 constitution and supremacy of the parliament which had been trampled by a dictator, who was trying his best to keep Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif away from the people.

He said that the PPP was in the forefront of the peoples struggle for their real emancipation from exploitative forces and called upon the party workers to close their ranks to meet the challenges.

Earlier Sindh PPP President Syed Qaim Ali Shah deplored the police action against the PPP cadre in Punjab when Asif Zardari landed there from Dubai on April 16.

He also castigated the government for framing charges against political workers under the Anti-terrorism Act.

He welcomed the new comers in the party and said their inclusion would give a boost to the party struggle

Mr Shah declared that come what may the PPP would take part in the local government elections and accused the government of indulging in massive pre-poll rigging.

He however claimed that the PPP had roots in the masses and would foil all such attempts.