Sanaullah hopeful that alliance with MQM-P to help PML-N get 3-4 seats in Karachi

• Rana Sanaullah says PML-N will strengthen in Balochistan. 
• Party prepared to help or take help from anyone, he adds. 
• He says country demands broad-based agreement on policies.

Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) leader Rana Sanaullah has said that three to four candidates of his party could get elected in Karachi in the upcoming general elections due to the allaince with Muttahida Qaumi Movement Pakistan (MQM-P), The News reported Friday. 

His comments came after PML-N and MQM-P announced that they would be jointly contesting the February 8 elections.

Speaking in Geo News’ programme ‘Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada kay Sath’ on Thursday, Sanaullah said a lot of things were yet to be decided but the MQM-P will give PML-N space where its candidates could succeed.

“We will strengthen PML-N in Balochistan,” he said, adding that there could be seat adjustments in some constituencies in the province and his party was prepared to help or take help from anyone where needed. 

“A hung parliament after the election will add to the country’s problems,” he warned and said the future government must at least have a simple majority.

He said the country’s circumstances demand a broad-based agreement on policies and whoever forms the next government will have to take along all the other parties to steer the country out of crises. He said the PML-N faced the worst situation in 2018, but despite that, it won 64 seats from Punjab in 2018.

“We proved our popularity on October 21 and we will prove it again in the upcoming election. In 2013, we won 117 seats from Punjab, and this time we will get more seats in Punjab than in 2013,” he continued. Sanaullah said there were 46 seats in south Punjab out of which 35 clearly belonged to the PML-N and they would get the majority there.

The former minister made it clear that his party did not intend to go for a merger with the Pakistan Muslim League Quaid (PML-Q) but was ready for seat adjustments. 

“Nawaz Sharif also intends to meet with Chaudhry Shujaat. PML-Q can be accommodated in Gujrat. There is no such thing as shying away from party but we are ready to accommodate them,” he said.

The PML-N stalwart said they had fulfilled their promise by giving tickets to MPs who had voted for their party in the by-elections. He said there was no offer of seat adjustment from the Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party. 

“They want to field their own candidates in all the constituencies and they have every right to do it,” he added.

“There may be seat adjustments with Fazlur Rehman in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa but there is not much hope. We have very good relations with Fazlur Rehman, Asif Zardari and Bilawal Bhutto. The PPP (Pakistan Peoples Party) and the PML-N will contest elections against each other but there is no enmity between us. The PML-N and the PPP are not looking to destroy each other.”