MQM-P's PIB faction to get its own coordination committee today

Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan's (MQM-P) faction led by Dr Farooq Sattar is going to elect its new coordination committee today (Sunday) through intra-party elections in a bid to retaining its hold on the party. MNA Ali Raza Abidi who is supporting Sattar told Business Recorder that dissidents will start adjusting their loyalty after the announcement of a new rabita committee.
He said the MQM-P is registered in the name of Farooq Sattar and nobody can snatch the party flag and election symbol from him. Abidi said that backdoor negotiations were underway with the dissident group regarding the Senate elections as Farooq Sattar has already announced he would withdraw his nominees in favour of those nominated by the Bahadurabad group.
"We are trying our best to keep all our MPAs united for the Senate election," he said, adding that all senior party leaders know that rifts within the party would only benefit Pakistan People's Party (PPP). The PPP leadership has already started bidding for the MQM-P MPAs in Sindh Assembly, he said, adding that the Bahadurabad group has realized this and negotiations to sort out differences are under way.
The MQM-P can elect four new senators on March 3 given its numerical strength in Sindh Assembly, provided they all remain united and field unanimous candidates in the election. Abidi said that power struggle within the party will not benefit anyone and "we are trying our best to keep our workers and voters united under a single platform of the MQM-P".
"Some forces are trying to divide the party into different factions, but they will not succeed," he said, adding that conspiracies against the party failed in the past and will fail now too. He said the MQM-P is truly representative of urban Sindh and efforts to bifurcate it into pieces must come to an end. A senior member of Bahadurabad group led by MNA Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui said that Farooq Sattar has lost his control over the party as majority of the party's lawmakers were supporting the Bahadurabad group.
"As for the Senate elections, we still have time to field unanimous candidates in consultation with Farooq Sattar and a decision regarding this will be announced soon," she said.