POLITICAL PARTIES AND POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT IN THE PUNJAB

1988-1999

Ph. D. Dissertation

By

Sajid Mahmood Awan

Taxila Institute of Asian Civilizations Quaid-e-Azam University

Islamabad, Pakistan 2008

DECLARATION

I hereby declare that this dissertation is the product of my individual

research, and it has not been submitted presently to any other university for

any other degree.

(Sajid Mahmood Awan)

Taxila Institute of Asian Civilizations Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad

I hereby recommend that the dissertation prepared under my supervision by

Sajid Mahmood Awan titled “Political Parties and Political Development in

the Punjab”, 1988-99, be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements

for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy.

Dr. Ghani-ur-Rahman Supervisor

Taxila Institute of Asian Civilizations Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the dissertation submitted by Sajid Mahmood Awan, is of sufficient standard to justify its acceptance by the Taxila Institute of Asian Civilizations, Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad, for the award of Degree of Doctor of Philosophy.

Dr. Ghani-ur-Rahman Supervisor

External Examiners:

1. ________________________

2._________________________

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CONTENTS

List of Contents List of Tables List of Figures Abbreviations Glossary Acknowledgements INTRODUCTION

Chapter 1 POLITICAL PARTIES AND POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT

1.1 HISTORY OF POLITICAL PARTIES

1.2 PARTY SYESTEMS

1.3 POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT

1.4 APPROACHES OF POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT

1.5 LITERATURE REVIEW

1.5.1 Elitist Approach 1.5.2 Marxist Approach 1.5.3 Ideological Approach 1.5.4 Praetorian Approach

1.6 METHODOLOGY

Chapter 2 POLITICAL PARTIES AND POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT IN PUNJAB 1849-1988

2.1 PRE-INDEPENDENCE EXPERIENCE 1849-1947

2.2 POST INDEPENDENCE EXPERIENCE 1947-1988

Chapter 3 POLITICAL PARTIES IN PUNJAB 1988-1999.

3.1 REGISTRATION OF POLITICAL PARTIES

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3.2 REVIVAL OF THE PARTY POLITICS 3.3 POLITICAL PARTIES IN POLITICS 1988

3.3.1 Party Position in 1988 Elections in Punjab

3.4 POLITICAL PARTIES IN POLITICS 1990 3.4.1 Party Position in 1990 Elections in Punjab

3.5 POLITICAL PARTIES IN POLITICS 1993 3.5.1 Party Position in 1993 Elections in Punjab

3.6 POLITICAL PARTIES IN POLITICS 1997 3.6.1 Party Position in 1997 Elections in Punjab

Chapter 4 POLITICAL PARTIES AND POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT IN PUNJAB 1988-1993

4.1 ISLAMI JAMHURI ITTEHAD (IJI) 4.2 NATIONAL PEOPLES PARTY (NPP) (KHAR GROUP) 4.3 PAKISTAN AWAMI ITTEHAD (PAI) / PAKISTAN PEOPLES

ALLIANCE (PPA) 4.4 PAKISTAN DEMOCRATIC ALLIANCE (PDA)

Chapter 5 POLITICAL PARTIES AND POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT IN PUNJAB 1993-1999

5.1 JAMIAT ULEMA-E-ISLAM (F) 5.2 PAKISTAN ISLAMIC FRONT (PIF)

5.3 MUTAHIDA DEENI MAHAZ (MDM) 5.4 MUSLIM ITTEHAD PAKISTAN (MIP)

5.5 NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC ALLIANCE (NDA)

5.6 PAKISTAN DEMOCRATIC PARTY (PDP)

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5.7 PAKISTAN MUSLIM LEAGUE (JUNEJO GROUP) 5.8 PAKISTAN MUSLIM LEAGUE (NAWAZ GROUP) PML (N) 5.9 PAKISTAN PEOPLES PARTY (PPP)

FINDINGS AND CONCLUSION SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY APPENDICES

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LIST OF TABLES

2.1: Parties Established Abroad but Working in Punjab

2.2: Parties in Punjab Established within India

2.3: Parties Established within Punjab

2.4: Party Position in the PLC/ PLA, 1923-1947

2.5: Elections in Punjab 1947-1988

2.6: Party Position in the Punjab Legislative Assembly Elections 1951

2.7: Party Position in the West Pakistan Legislative Assembly Elections 1965

2.8: Party Position in the Punjab Legislative Assembly Election 1970

2.9: Party Position in the 1977 Elections in Punjab

3.1: Party Position in the General Election 1988 in Punjab

3.2: Party Position in the General Election 1990 in Punjab

3.5: Total Political Parties in the P.A. Elections in Punjab

4.1: Total Political Parties in the P.A. Elections In Punjab

4.2: Parties Having Seats in the Provincial Assembly of Punjab in 1988, 1990, 1993 and1997 Elections

4.3: IJI’s Position in the General Elections-1997

4.4: NPP (K’s) Position in the 1988 Elections in Punjab

4.5: PAI’s Position in the 1988 Elections in Punjab

4.6: PDA’s Position in the 1993 Elections in Punjab

5.1: JUI’s (F) Position in the 1988, 1990, 1993 and 1997 Elections in Punjab

5.2: PIF’s Position in the 1993 Elections in Punjab

5.3: MDM’s Position in the 1993 Elections in Punjab

5.4: MIP’s Position in the 1997 Elections in Punjab

5.5: NDA’s Position in the 1993 Elections in Punjab

5.6: PDP’s Position in the 1988, 1990 And 1997 Elections In Punjab

5.7: PML (J’s) Position in the 1993 and 1997 Elections in Punjab

5.8: PML (N’s) Position in the 1993 And 1997 Elections in Punjab

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5.9: PPP’s Position in the 1988, 1990, 1993 and 1997 Elections in

Punjab

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LIST OF FIGURES

1.1: Political Institutionalisation, political Participation and Political Development

2.1: Political Parties in Punjab 1849-1947

2.2: Communal Distribution of Parties of Punjab 1849-1947

2.3: Parties in Punjab 1947-1977

3.1: Parties Registered to the Election Commission of Pakistan 1986-87

3.2: List of Political Parties Participating in the General Elections 1988

3.3: List of Political Parties Participating in the General Elections 1990

3.4: List of Political Parties Participating in the General Elections 1993

3.5: List of Political Parties Participating in the General Elections 1997

1

INTRODUCTION

The present study seems in first instance a study of political parties i.e. stasiology ─

science of political parties (the term was initially coined by Duverger, 1978: 422) but,

indeed, is a study of political development. It, in fact, wants to see the role of political

parties in the process of political development in Punjab. The period under study is of

special significance with a sound rationale of its relevance. This, indeed, is the only

period in the political history of the area, when rightful constitutional governments were

in action, with a due participation of political parties. The area under study i.e. Punjab,

also has a specific significance of its own. Having the longest age of political exercise

and a vast experience of modern political institutions especially that of political parties,

Punjab stands the pacesetter area, not only for all the rest of provinces of Pakistan but for

the centre as well.

The problem under research is that politics in modern times is

focused on the people for the people and is played by the people. People, in turn, are

represented by the political parties. Political Parties, it means, are the most vital element

of the political system in determining the direction, nature and level of political

development. Whereas, political parties are basically the institution of society, but

military and bureaucracy are institutions of the state. In the developing countries, like that

of Pakistan, state institutions are strong enough to counter the influence of society and its

representative institutions. Or in other words, if the representative institutions of society

are weak they will be unable to protect the interests of the society. Natural outcome of

2

this weakness will be domination of the authoritarian institutions of state. This

sequentially weakens the political system of the society. Political development fells

victim to more complexities in such a complex state of affairs.

The present researcher recapitulates this situation as: revival of

parliamentary democracy which Pakistan experienced in 1988 after a long dictatorial

interregnum could not last long due to the reprehensible functioning of the institutions of

the state and the society. He, however, puts main liability on the less effectiveness of the

political parties. Had the political parties been playing their due role, they would have

never spared the apolitical forces to take over. With this premise the study wants to

address certain questions. That what was the due role of political parties? Did the

political parties play there due role, if yes, how much? Was there any disparity in the

conduct of political parties vis-à-vis the apolitical forces, if yes, what its nature was?

Why the political parties failed to counter the apolitical forces to preserve the sanctity of

their political system and in a way of their own?

In order to address these questions the present study is divided in to five

different chapters followed by the findings and conclusions. The first chapter is referring

to the theoretical considerations of the phenomena of political development along with

the operationalisation of the principle concepts used in this study. After discussing

definitional aspects of the concept of political parties it has dealt with the history of the

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artefact of political parties at length. It is followed by the narration of different types of

party systems prevalent in the world around. Then the researcher has explored the range

of the theory of political development to draw a model of analyses for the present study.

An extensive literature survey of all the interrelated concepts of political development,

politics of Punjab and that of the political parties has unfolded a variety of dimensions

exposed by the previous researchers.

The second chapter presents simply a historical review of the experiences

of political development and of political parties in the light of modern experiment of the

Westminster model of representative polity. This chapter is divided in to two parts. First

half of the chapter is dealing with the pre-independence experience of political parties

and their role in the process of political development in the province of Punjab. Studying

the nature of all the political parties in action during the said period the study explores

that three different political doctrines were in action. These contending doctrines include

‘Chankian Politics’, ‘Machiavellian Politics’ and the ‘Muslim Politics’. With the rapidly

expanding political participation when these varying doctrines could not institutionalise

the political system in to a pluralistic society, it led to the political decay which resulted

in to partition of India. Second half of the chapter has dealt with the post-independence

experience of political development and its interrelationship with the political parties.

Following the identical pattern of political experience the political parties could not come

up to institutionalise at the pace of expansion of political participation. It again caused

political instability which resulted in to the disintegration of Pakistan.

4

The third chapter has studied the working of political parties during the

period under study. Starting with the revival of party politics as a result of the Benazir

Bhutto case in the year 1988, it has studied the performance of political parties along with

the party position in all the four elections held during the period under consideration.

Counting the number of candidates nominated by different parties, number of votes

secured by these parties, percentage of the valid votes polled by every party and the

number of seats pocketed by them the researcher has tried to evaluate the process of

institutionalisation in different parties. The researcher has found no political party with a

due level of institutionalisation. Resultantly whenever political participation in favour of

any party exceeds its level of institutionalisation it goes towards disintegration.

Eventually most of the political parties could not last long and were either vanished from

the political scene altogether or were split in to different segments.

Both the fourth and fifth chapters have studied the phenomenon of

political development and political parties during the periods of 1988-1993, and 1993-

1999 respectively. The chapter inaugurates with the conjectural contemplation of the

matter. Then after enlisting all the parties active in the political process, the researcher

has selected only thirteen parties for his consideration. Criterion for the selection of these

thirteen parties was simply their participation not only in the electoral exercise but in the

Provincial Legislature of Punjab. In the researcher’s view only the parties being able to

make their representation possible in the assembly can contribute their due in the process

of political development. Only four parties were evaluated in this chapter.

5

All the rest of nine parties are discussed in the forth coming chapter. This

distribution of parties seems more chronological but is more logical. The four parties

discussed in the fourth chapter were the parties which were present only in any of the

previous two elections of 1988 and 1990. The nine parties examined in the fifth chapter

were the parties which were primarily present in the last two elections of 1993 and 1997.

However three parties i.e. the JUI (F), the PDP, and the PPP were the parties which were

present in any of the previous elections also. As their participation was extended to the

last two elections also so they were included in the last chapter. This chapter is followed

by the findings and conclusions to summarise this thesis up.

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Chapter 1

POLITICAL PARTIES AND POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT

Political parties are an intriguing phenomenon. They intrigue the interests of the people in

organizing political parties (Duverger, 1964: 155; Lenin, 1904: 74), in enhancing political

participation (Disraeli, quoted by Cline, 1939: 509-512; Blake, 1966: 247-248;

Conancher, J. B. 1971), in decision making (Crotty, 1970: 294), in striving to acquire

power (Neumann, 1955: 403), in promoting national interest (Burke, quoted in Langford,

Paul 1981), in protecting their rights (Madison, see Morgan, 1981:613-625) and in

contributing their due share in the process of political development (LaPalombara and

Weiner, 1972: 399-438). The research on parties includes abundant writings whose

rationale lies primarily in a researcher’s desire to approach the study of parties from a

distinctive or simply better perspective than that of the other researchers. Like Disraeli

(Op.Cit.), viewed ‘party as an organized opinion’. Similarly, Benjamin Constant (see

Howard, 1980:10-20) wrote that ‘a party is a group of men professing same political

doctrine’. Maclver (1947: 298) defines a political party as: “an association organized in

support of some principle of policy which by constitutional means it endeavors to make

the determinant of government”. Lord Bryce (1921: 99) defines political parties as:

“organized bodies with voluntary membership, their concerted energy being employed in

the pursuit of political power”. Weber (1904-1905; trans. 1947: 31) defines political party

as: “a voluntary organization of propaganda and agitation, seeking to acquire power in

order to procure chances for its active militant adherents to realize objectives, aims or

personal advantages or both”. Edmund Burke (1790:16) thought of a party as a group of

7

men who had agreed upon a principle by which the national interest might be served.

Leon D. Epstein (1967: 127) says: “any group, however loosely organized, seeking to

elect governmental officeholders under a given label”. According to Leacock (1913: 31-

40), “By party we mean more or less an organised group of citizens who act together as a

political unit. They share or profess to share the same opinion on public questions and by

exercising their voting power towards a common end, seek to obtain the control of the

government”. Gettel (2004:274) states: “ A political party consists of a group of citizens

more or less organized who act as a political unit and who by the use of their voting

power aim to control the government and carry out their general policies” Gettel and

Dnuuing, 2004: 274-290). To Gilchrist (2000: 640), “A political party may thus be

defined as an organized group of citizens who prefer to share the same political views

and who by acting as a political unit try to control the government”.

Variety of definitions has driven the task to a contradiction: that it seems difficult

to present a universally acceptable definition or theory of parties; yet it is essential too.

This dichotomy begins with the view of party organization as a “Stratarchy”. An Italian

sociologist Robert Michels (1959: iii-ix) offered his “iron law of oligarchy”— that within

any larger organization, there is a tendency to devolve in to the hands of a small,

cohesive, tight-knit elite for the decision making. Michels argues that any large

organization is diarchical and is necessarily led by a small number of individuals who can

not be responsible to the rank-and-file membership, in any meaningful and effective way.

8

On the other side, Eldersveld Samuel (1959: 133-136) suggested an alternative

image of the party as a “Stratarchy”. Stratarchy stands as a special type of hierarchy in

which the ruling groups, power prerogatives and the exercise of power are diffused.

Contrary to the centralized unity of command, Stratarchy has numerous strata commands

which operate with varying but a considerable degree of independence.

A number of researchers have explored other fields, searching the structure,

functions, types and nature of political parties and the party systems. They all have

divergent views with different conclusions about the role of parties in political stability

and the political development. Thus, Duverger (1968: xv), and Barnes (1968: 105-138),

seem right to say that any general theory of the party or of any of the political institutions

or process does not now or never will exist. Numerous theories of the party are there

which may be more or less powerful, useful or reasonable but no theory is relevant for all

the times.

Absence of any pertinent theory has made the study of political parties

amorphous. Its varying limits have made it more or less subjective to the nature of

respective studies. The researchers generally pick and choose among literally thousands

of books articles, paying special attention to the one dealing with some specific aspect of

the party activity. Or, they may choose instead to concentrate on those items in the

literature that are pathfinders in their applications of new tools, new perspectives and new

9

dimensions to the study of parties. Similarly one may choose, as the present researcher

has done, to encompass a broad ranging spectrum of the role of political parties in the

process of political development. Very few researchers have explored this aspect directly,

their works will, however, be reviewed in the forthcoming pages in detail.

The role of political parties in political process instead of political development is

generally observed by various scholars with reference to the nature of the parties,

whereas, a liberal view appreciates the role of parties as the agencies of organized public

opinion with the help of which a political system operates. On the other side, Marxian

view examines the role of parties within the framework of class antagonism. Even

though, the liberals view the role of parties further in two divergent ways. The English,

French and Italian writers lay emphasis on the factor of ‘principles’ lying in the

foundation and naturally the functions of a party. Whereas, American scholars view the

role of party as machine or a platform for a political strive to attain power on democratic

lines. Representing the English view Burke (1756:16) signifies the role of a political

party in the ‘promotion of national interest on some particular principles to which its

members are all agreed’. Jupp (1968: 2) quotes Disraeli reiterating the same view of

‘pursuance of certain principles by the parties’. Similarly, Duverger (1964: xiv) quotes

Benjamin Constant stressing upon the ‘commonly shared political doctrine of a party.

The American scholars (Henderson, 1976; Abbott and Rogowsky, 1978; Ippolito and

Walker, 1980; Blank, 1980), on the other side, deliberately avoid this reference to the

sanctity of ‘principles’ and evaluate the parties simply as the competitors in the struggle

10

of power. For instance, Schattschneider (1942 : 35-37) uses a new phraseology that first

of all a political party is supposed to launch an organized attempt to get power, but it is

equally just to say that parties are held together by the cohesive power of public plunder’.

This view regards political party as a vote catching machine or an agency to mobilize the

public support for a candidate at the elections, or an instrument aggregating the interests

that demand their voluble articulation, as Neumann (1955: 396) suggests: “we take a

political party generally as the articulate organization of society’s active political agents,

those who are concerned with the control of governmental power and who compete for

popular support with another group or groups holding divergent views. As such, it is the

great intermediary which links social forces and ideologies to official governmental

institutions and relates them to political action within the larger political community”.

David E. Apter (1963: 328) has referred Dean and Schuman observing the same notion of

political party making it hardly distinguishable from a pressure or interest group. They

opine that parties have become essentially political institutions “to implement the

objectives of interest groups”. More or less a similar element is found in the

interpretation given by Crotty (1970: 294), who sees a political party as “a formally

organized group that performs the functions of educating the public …… that recruits and

promotes individuals for public office, and that provides a comprehensive linkage

function between the public and governmental decision makers. It is distinguished from

other groups by its dedication to influencing policy making on a broad scale, preferably

by controlling government and by its acceptance of institutionalized rules of electoral

conduct more specifically capturing public office through peaceful means”. Epstein

(1967: 9) also treats political party as “any group seeking votes under a recognized

11

label”. Jupp (Op.Cit.: 3), refers to Lasswell (1936), who observes: “For many purposes, it

is enough to define a political party as an organization specialized with regard to

presenting candidates and issues under its own name in elections”. Sartory (1976: 62) has

also quoted Lasswell and Kaplan’s work (1950), Framework for Political Enquiry

sketching the role of a political party as “a group formulating comprehensive issues and

subjecting candidates in elections”. Riggs (1970: 580) has also taken a structural view of

the role of a political party and has identified it as “any organization which nominates

candidates for election to an elected assembly”. Schumpetes (1942: 283) is indeed the

one who had laid the foundation of this prevalent notion of political parties held by some

American scholars declaring that a party is not a group of men who intend to promote

public welfare upon some principles on which they all are agreed. As Burke (1975, 16)

says “Political party is, rather, a group whose members propose to act in concert in the

competitive struggle for political power”. A refined version of the same notion is

available in the narration of Myron Weiner and Joseph la Palombara (1966: 3), who say

that by political party “we do not mean a loosely–knit group of notables with limited and

intermittent relationships to local counterparts. Our definition recovers instead, (1)

continuity in organization that is organization whose life-span is not dependent upon the

life-span of current leaders; (2) manifest and presumable permanent organization at the

local level with regularized communications and other relationships between local and

national units; (3) self-conscious determination of leaders at both national and local levels

to capture and to hold decision-making power alone or in coalition with others, not

simply to influence the exercise of power, and (4) the concern on the part of the

organization for seeking followers at the polls or in some manner striving for popular

12

support”. Encyclopedia Encarta (2001) notes: “Political Parties are organizations that

mobilize voters on behalf of a common set of interests, concerns, and goals. In many

nations, parties play a crucial role in the democratic process. They formulate political and

policy agendas, select candidates, conduct election campaigns, and monitor the work of

their elected representatives. Political parties link citizens and the government, providing

a means by which people can have a voice in their government.”

Marxist view of political party on the other side is, indeed, an antithesis of its

liberal counterpart. Contrary to the liberal emphasis on party as a ‘doctrine’, it gives the

idea of a party as a ‘class’, which fights for initiating a new phase culminating in the era

of communism. Lenin (1904) opines that “the proletariat has no weapon in the struggle

for power except organization …..Constantly pushed down to the depths of complete

poverty, the proletariat can and will inevitably become an unconquerable force only as a

result of this: that its ideological union by means of the principles of Marxism is

strengthened by the material union of an organization , holding together millions of

toilers in the army of the working class .”

The communist party is, basically, declared by Lenin (1904:725) as the ‘vanguard

of the revolution’ for the working class. The same view is reflected in the text of a

resolution adopted at the Congress of Communist International in 1920 that said: “The

communist party is created by means of the selection of the best, most class-conscious

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most self-sacrificing and far-sighted workers…..the communist is the lever of political

organization, with the help of which the more progressive part of the working class

directs on the right path the whole mass of the proletariat and the semi-proletariat along

the right road” (Degras, 1956:28).

Lenin’s theory of party goes further to declare that: the communist party stands

for the principle of ‘democratic centralism’. Maurice Duverger (Op. Cit.: 155), critically

observes: “The idea of Lenin seems to concern not only the leaders but also the

‘militants’. In practice, in so far as the latter are maintained by the party, they are

naturally given position of control, because they alone dispose of sufficient leisure to fill

these positions effectively. To create a ‘class of professional revolutionaries’ is

equivalent to create a ‘class of professional leaders of revolutionary parties’, an inner

circle which stirs up the masses and which is founded upon the official duties performed

within the party; it is equivalent to creating a bureaucracy, but is to say an oligarchy. If

the posts of party’s permanent officials were strictly elective, bureaucracy could coincide

with democracy. Practically, however this is not so and can not be so: the militants who

are capable of filling a permanent position and are willing to do so are not very

numerous: the leaders of the party are anxious to keep close control of them so as to be

certain of their technical ability and of their political trustworthiness: the leadership is

largely made up of permanent officials already in office. Thus, there is born an authentic

oligarchy which exercises power, restrains it, and transmits it by means of co-option.” In

spite of all this criticism Duverger (Ibid: xv) has observed that the role of the Marxist

14

schema “is true in one respect: the ‘bourgeoisie’ and ‘proletariat’ do not perhaps

constitute two classes, defined in strictly in economic terms, but they characterise two

states of mind, two special attitudes and two ways of life, the distinction between them

throws light on certain problems concerned with the structure of parties.”

After the debate of political parties Duverger (1964), has noted “we find

ourselves in a vicious circle of : a general theory of parties will eventually be

constructed only upon the preliminary work of many profound studies; but these studies

cannot be truly profound so long as there exists no theory of political parties”. In the

absence of any general theory of political parties an International Comparative Political

Parties Project was initiated in 1967 for the purpose for conducting the first empirically

based, comprehensive, and comparative analyses of political parties through out the

world. The project focused 158 political parties working in 53 countries during 1950-

1962 and traced their providence through 1978. In studying these political parties the

project selected the “set of organizations that pursued a goal of placing their avowed

representatives in government positions” (Janda, 1968; Janda, 1969; Janda, 1970). The

project defined a political party as an organization ─ entailing frequent interactions

among individuals with some distribution of work and role differentiation. Different

organizations may have multiple goals but to qualify as a political party an organization

should necessarily have as one of its goals that of placing its avowed representatives in

government positions. Furthermore, such individuals must also be avowed

representatives of their respective parties. Finally, the term “placing” should be

15

interpreted broadly to mean through the electoral process (Ibid, 1980: 5). Keeping these

very characteristics of the political parties’ the present study has opt the definition of

political parties as given in the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan 1973. It

is noted as “Political Party means a body of individuals or an association of persons

setting up an organizational structure or collecting funds or owning property, with the

object of propagating political opinions or indulging in any other political activity”. This

is the same definition which primarily was given by the Political Parties Act 1962.

However the act of ‘indulging in any other political activity’ in this definition will be

interpreted as ‘placing’ which further is taken by the International Comparative Political

Parties Project as signifying through the electoral process.

1.1 HISTORY OF POLITICAL PARTIES

The origin of political parties can be traced in the western world where it is closely

associated with the development of the modern state and representative democracy.

Initially, the parties evolved through a struggle between the contending groups to grasp

control of the power of government (Milbrath, 1965: 120-22; Putnam, 1966:640-55;

Verba, 1965: 467-98). Such struggle for power initiated within legislatures, which were

formed initially to advise monarchs. By seventeenth and eighteenth centuries many

legislative bodies had started claiming for independent power bases and privileges of

their own (Latham, 1952:376-398; Krislov, 1963: 694-721). The earliest model of the

modern party system evolved in Britain in the eighteenth century. Subsequently, the party

system also evolved in the United States in 1788, after the ratification of the Constitution

16

of the United States (Beer, 1965:105-38; Chambers, 1967: 3-32; Converse and Dupeux,

1962:1-23). Competition between political parties, in both Britain and the United States,

undermined the traditional conceptions of politics. This conception was, indeed, rooted in

classical notions of virtue and public service. Under this tradition, political leaders were

supposed to place the common good above the interests of a fraction of the society.

Leaders striving to benefit only themselves or a limited portion of the society were

predominantly considered as corrupt. The party competition, however, put the public

figures to follow a contrary set of assumptions. First, that politics “naturally” involves

conflict and division, and second, that the true goals of politics are to secure the

economic interests and political influence of groups divided along lines of class,

ethnicity, race, and religion (Abramson, 1971: 131-55; Adrian, 1961: 251-63; Eckstein,

1968:33-43). Far from corrupting a society the party competition has measurably

strengthened and integrated it by providing a way to include and represent different

groups and interests, at varying times( Barnes, Op.Cit.: 105-38).

With the wide extension of voting rights to the adult male citizens, all through

Europe and the United States, the legislators had to appeal to a much larger segment of

their national populations. Political parties grew radically in size in the form of

independent, popularly based organizations, no longer serving merely the interests of

narrow elite in the 19th century (Hennessy, 1968: 1-44).

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1.2 PARTY SYSTEMS

Notwithstanding the political party is difficult to define, it is relatively much easier to

describe and to identify the party system. The study of political system is, basically, the

study of political and para-political organizations of a society. According to Duverger

(1964: 5-17) it includes even the organizations that play the role of ‘indirect parties’. If

so, the scope of study is wider so as to include every political party whether big or small,

operating at the national, regional or local level with ideological commitment or

neutrality, and all the like more. Most of the writers have referred to three kinds of party

systems i.e. one party system, two party or bi-party system and the multi-party system.

There are some countries which have no party or the party systems so are declared as

nonpartisan. In a nonpartisan system, neither any official political parties exist, nor does

the law permit it. Every candidate for the office runs on his or her own merits in

nonpartisan elections. Resultantly, no typically formal party alignments exist within the

legislature in nonpartisan legislatures. Despite claiming nonpartisan voting, most of the

members have consistent and identifiable voting patterns. Founding fathers of the United

States intended the government to be non-partisan. Eventually, the first few sessions of

the United States Congress and the administration of George Washington were

nonpartisan. The unicameral legislature of Nebraska is the example of nonpartisan state

government body in the United States. So much so, many city and county governments

are also nonpartisan. Having legal prohibitions against political parties, factions within

nonpartisan governments generally evolve into political parties. (Burnham, 1970: 88-97)

18

In Single Party Systems, only one political party is legally allowed to hold power.

Although, minor parties may sometimes be allowed, they however, are legally bound to

accept the leadership of the dominant party. This party may not always be matching to

the government, whereas sometimes positions within the party may be more important

than the positions within government (Fainsod, 1968:221-46).

In Dominant-Party Systems, opposition parties are allowed. There may be even a

deeply established democratic tradition, but other parties are widely considered to have

no chance to gain power. Sometimes, social, economic and political circumstances, and

public opinion are the reason for others parties' failure. Sometimes, typically in countries

with less established democratic traditions, it is possible that the dominant party will

remain in power by using patronage or sometimes by voting fraud. In the latter case, the

definition between Dominant and single-party system becomes rather indistinct.

Examples of dominant party systems include the Peoples Action Party in Singapore and

the African National Congress in South Africa. One party dominant system also existed

in the southern United States with the Democratic Party from the 1880s until the 1970s

and in Mexico with the Industrial Revolution Party until 1990s (Eckstein, 1968:436-53).

Two-Party Systems in which there are two political parties dominant to such an

extent that electoral success under the banner of any other party is extremely difficult as

in the United States and in Jamaica. One right wing coalition party and one left wing

19

coalition party is the most common ideological breakdown in such a system but the

political parties in two-party states are traditionally catch all parties which are inclusive

and ideologically broad. The relationship between the two-party system and the voting

system in practice was described by Maurice Duverger and is known as Duverger’s Law.

Multi-Party Systems are the systems having various parties. In Canada and the

United Kingdom, there are two strong parties; with a third party that is an electoral

success. The party may repeatedly get second place in elections and pose a threat to the

other two parties frequently, but has still never held government formally (Ford, 1898:

21-32). However in times of minority governments, their support is often necessary to

either support or defeat a government. It means that they may have considerable

influence under the favorable circumstances. Only in some rare cases the nation may

have an active three-party system, in which all three parties routinely hold top office. It is

very rare for a country to have more than three parties who are all equally successful, and

all have an equal chance of independently forming government, as is there in Finland

(Dahl, 1966: 51-75).

Political systems having many parties but no one with the majority position are

called Mixed Party Systems. More commonly, in mixed party cases there are numerous

parties, no one party often has a chance of gaining power. The parties in such kind of

20

political systems work with each other to form coalition governments. This had been a

promising trend in the politics of Pakistan during the period under study.

1.3 POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT

The study of political development has its roots in the 1950s.The conscious

conceptualization and systemization of this notion, however, took place mainly in 1960s.

That decade, indeed, saw an epic outpouring of academic research on the meaning,

components, sequences, crises, causes, consequences, dimensions, patterns, uses and the

theories of political development. A series of bibliographical discussions of this literature

include mainly the works of Hah and Schneider (1968: 359-92), Montgomery (1969),

Deutsch (1961:493-514), Huntington (1971: 283-322), Packenham (1964:108-20) and

that of Pye (1966).

The Main factor behind this outpouring was mainly the outcome of two main

streams of scholarly activities. One was the expansion of area study programs in the

1950s. The second stream contributing to the study of political development stemmed

from what is known as “behavioural revolution” in political science. Actually prior to

World War II scholars of comparative politics limited their attention mainly to Western

Europe and North America. After World War II, however, their interest shifted to the

cold war against Soviet Union and then onto the American expansion policies and

pursuits in Asia, the Middle East, Latin America and Africa. The behavioural revolution,

21

on the other side, initiated an effort to combine theoretical rigor and empirical research

with the aim to test generalizations through systematic cross-national comparisons. This

tendency led the behaviourist political scientists to adapt some concepts like structure,

function, input, output, feedback and system from the leading contemporary schools of

sociological analyses. Gabriel Almond, James S. Coleman and their associates took lead

in applying these concepts to analyse and compare the politics of different countries in

their work The Politics of the Developing areas, published in 1960. The behavioural

revolution also made a major contribution by introducing more precise and statistical

measurements of political phenomena (Russet, 1964). These potentialities of quantitative

research in the field of political development were first exploited significantly by Daniel

Lerner in his analyses of The Passing of Traditional Societies, published in 1958.

1.4 APPROACHES OF POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT

A wide survey of the literature of this formative phase of the newly born domain of

political development reflects that at least three major schools of political development

analyses existed. Huntington and Dominguez (1975:1-96) have categorized them as:

i- System Function Approach. ii- Social Process Approach. iii- Comparative History Approach.

22

The system-function approach combined the elements of system theory and

structure-functionalism approach. It was derived and heavily influenced by the work of a

sociologist Talcot Parsons (1951, 1961, 1969, and 1971). The scholars applying this

approach in their works include David Easten (1953, 1965a, 1965b), Leonard Binder

(1962), Fred Riggs (1964), David Apter (1965, 1971), Levy (1966), Gabrial Almond and

G. Bingham Powell (1966), and Almond (1970).

The social process approach attempted to relate political behaviour and processes

to social processes such as industrialization, urbanisation and increasing media

consumption through comparative quantitative analyses of different societies. It can be

observed in the works of Lerner (1958), Deutsch (1961), Phillips Cutright (1963),

Hayward Alker (1966), Michel Hudson (1968), Martin Needler (1968), etc.

The comparative history approach represents a blend of a more traditional

approach with concentrated efforts at systematic and logical exactitude. It can be

observed in the works of Cyril Black (1966), S. N. Eisenstadt (1966), Seymour Martin

Lipset (1963), Barrington Moore (1966), Dankwart Rustow (1967), Reinhard Bendix

(1964), Samuel P. Huntington (1968), and Lucian W. Pye (1966).

23

Each of the aforementioned approaches has its advantages, limitations and

delimitations. In permutation they shed substantial new light on the phenomena of

political development.

Another researcher Chowdhury (1988: 8-11), has classified the approaches for the

study of political development into the following three perspectives:

i. Historical; ii. Typological, and;

iii. Evolutionary.

Chowdhury narrates the contours of these perspectives as the historical

perspective presumes that the forces of history progress in a unidirectional way. Karl

Popper (1944), for instance defines historicism as “an approach to the social sciences

which assumes that historical prediction is their principal aim, and which assumes that

this aim is attainable by discovering the rhythms, or the patterns, the laws or the trends

that underlie the evolution of history.. Some other writers, like Comte, Hegel, Maine,

Spencer, and Durkheim also opine that development advances towards the Western

model. Marxist view states that all societies pass through five stages before coming to

attain communism i.e. primitive communism, slavery, feudalism, capitalism, and

socialism. This viewpoint of nonlinear growth has had an incredible impact on the study

of political development. W. W. Rostow ( 1960: 4-11) followed the footprints of Marx to

delineate his five stages of economic growth as: traditional society, preconditions for

take-off, take-off, drive towards maturity and the age of high mass consumption. In his

24

later research, Politics and the Stages of Growth, Rostow (1971: 230-266), includes

another stage named as ‘the search for equality’. Tagging on Rostow, A. F. K. Organski

(1965) demarcates four stages of development i.e. the politics of primary unification, the

politics of industrialization, the politics of national welfare and the politics of abundance.

This concept of political development implies that all the underdeveloped countries will

have to follow the same path which the developed countries had passed through, long

ago. This concept of a single course development is, however not universally applicable

in the presence of various patterns of development. Rostow and ward (1964) have also

rejected the unilinear stage theory in their work Political Modernization in Japan and

Turkey. They have proved that Japan and Turkey experienced development quite

differently. They further argue that the environmental conditions determine the patterns

and rates of development in a society.

The typological perspective of political development assumes that the developing

countries will have to follow the Western model of political development. These

ethnocentric tendencies developed in political science mainly due to the influence of the

sociologists like Weber, Parson and F. K. Sutton. Mannheim (1954) however attributes

these ethnocentric propensities to the value system of the elites in Western societies.

Almond and Pye have studied political development in this framework. Political activities

of the community elites in the developed countries also reflect the same notion.

25

Both the aforementioned perspectives become critical due to their insistence on

homogeneous and overlooking heterogeneous or reversible process of political

development. That is why, Coleman (1971: 73), has introduced another viewpoint i.e.

evolutionary perspective. This perspective looks political development as an inbuilt

capacity of a system to improve and transform itself. This approach is basically based

upon the idea that political development is a “continuous interaction among the process

of structural differentiation, the imperatives of equality, and the integrative, responsive

and the adaptive capacity of a political system (Ibid: 74). Coleman further argues that

these three variables i.e. differentiation, equality and capacity constitute the development

prototype. Sidney Verba (1971), points out that all societies confront certain crises of

identity, legitimacy, participation, distribution and penetration in their attempt to realize

differentiation, equality and capacity. If a country, however, can resolve its identity crises

first, it can easily tackle with all the other crises of legitimacy, distribution, participation

and penetration (Ibid: 10).

Such a high concern with political development led the political scientists to

define the concept of political development. The definitions proliferated at an alarming

rate. Mainly because the term “political development” had positive connotations and the

scholars tried to apply it to the happenings, which looked important or desirable to them.

Resultantly, there was a large and often impressive body of literature that could only be

classified as political development studies. Political development is defined as the

emergence of mass participation in politics and the elaboration of political institutions

capable of responding to or directing such mass participation (Huntington, 1968).

26

Almond and Powel (1966:19-23), have defined political development as “the

increased differentiation and specialization of political structures and the increased

secularization of political culture.” Rustow (1967: 230-266) defines political

development as “(1) an increasing national political unity plus (2) a broadening base of

political participation”. According to Riggs (1970: 580), political development “refers to

the process of politicization; increasing participation or involvement of the citizen in state

activities, in power calculations and consequences”. Some other writers use the terms of

‘political development’ and ‘political modernisation’ interchangeably. Coleman (1968:

395-396) defines political modernization in the following words: “Political

modernization refers to those processes of differentiation of political structure and

secularization of political culture which enhances the capability, the effectiveness and

efficiency of performance ─_of a society’s political system ─ the interactions

characteristics of a traditional polity are predominantly ascriptive, particularistic and

diffused, those of a modern polity are predominantly achievement oriented, universalistic

and specific. Political modernization is viewed as the process of movement from the

traditional pole to the modern pole of the continuum”.

Shills (1963:8) points out that the politics in the newly born states is elitist,

however the ruling elites are committed to equalitarianism and modernization. He

describes outlook of the elites in developing nations as follows: “Modernity in the

eyes of the elites of the new states therefore entails the dethronement of the rich and the

27

traditionally privileged from their positions of preeminent influence. It involves land

reforms i.e. the breaking up of large private states, especially those which are owned by

absentee landlords. It involves universal suffrage, even if suffrage is exercised primarily

as acclamation. It involves breaking the power of the traditional interests of chiefs,

sultans and priesthoods. To be a ‘modern’ democracy, according to the prevailing

conception in the new states implies that the rulers should be answerable to the people for

what they do. Where they are not in fact answerable to them through a legislature which

is popularly and periodically elected, then they allege that they exercise a stewardship on

behalf of the people and that they are answerable to the collective will, the high will is

more real then the empirical will of their people.”

Hagen (1962) regards political development as the “growth of institutions and

practices that allow a political system to deal with its own fundamental problems more

effectively in the short run, while working towards more responsiveness of the regime

popular demand in the long run.” Eisenstatd (1962; 1967:252) considers political

development as “the ability of a political system to sustain continuously new types of

political demands and organization”.

"Political development may be defined in terms of the capacity of the political

system to satisfy the changing needs of the members of the society". (Park, 1984:58)

Harry Eckstein defines political development as the growth that occurs "in politics as

such", and elaborates what this growth looks like and how it arises.

28

All the aforementioned definitions show that there is a considerable difference

among the social scientists on the meaning, description and explanation of political

development. Actually, the stress of the contemporary social sciences on the knowledge

to be grounded on purely empirical investigation restricted many social scientists to pass

judgments on the political development in strange and unknown societies, which were

making new experiences in this domain. Resultantly, they deem it fit to follow the almost

euphorically hopeful view of the possibilities for rapid development in the new states,

which were so common a few years ago. So the guiding considerations which tried to

give a direction and discipline to the social sciences were challenged by the paradoxical

complexities and challenges of political development. Outcome was the visible level of

confusion, ambiguity and imprecision in the characterization of the term “political

development”.

That is why; Pye had to declare it helpful to elaborate some of the confusing

meanings generally attached with the term of political development. He (Pye; 1966: 33-

45) has enlisted ten definitions of the term with the purpose to eliminate a situation of

semantic perplexity which, he declares cannot help but impede the development of

theory. The enlisted definitions are:

1). Political Development as the Political Prerequisite of Economic Development.

2). Political Development as the Politics Typical of Industrial Societies

29

3). Political Development as Political Modernisation

4). Political Development as the Operation of a Nation State

5). Political Development as Administrative and Legal Development

6). Political Development as Mass Mobilization and Participation

7). Political Development as the Building of Democracy

8). Political Development as Stability and Orderly Change

9). Political Development as Mobilization and Power

10). Political Development as One Aspect of a Multi-Dimensional Process of Social Change.

Pye has dealt with the matter at length and has tried to cover the maximum

aspects of the issue, but have declared them all insufficient to develop or evolve a theory

of political development. The first theory that is “Political Development as the Political

Prerequisite of Economic Development” was primarily based on the problem of

economic development and their transformation towards self-sustainability. Buchanan

and Ellis (1955), Baran (1957), Hirschman (1958), Higgins (1959), and Ward (1962), has

applied this perspective on the study of political development. Pye (Op.Cit.: 33-34),

however has declared this view of political development essentially negative. Basically,

the pattern of development was naturally varying with the variation of nature, problems

or situation of different societies. Secondly, economies manifestly change more slowly

than political arrangements. Certain societies have even experienced substantial political

change without any experience of industrial development or generous economic growth

(Ibid: 34).

30

The next view of “Political Development as the Politics Typical of Industrial

Societies” is also closely tied to economic considerations. It involves the politics of

already industrialized and highly advanced economies. In this perspective the industrial

societies, whether politically developed or not, set certain standards of political behaviour

and performance. These standards constitute the stage for political development as a

model for all the other societies to follow. Rostow (1952; 1960), has emphasized the

relationship between the process and stages of economic growth and the patterns of

political activity. The cyclical pattern of development of this approach, quite like the

previous one, becomes the dearth of this approach too. So, to tie political development

firmly to economic activity would be to overlook much that is of vivid importance in the

developing countries.

The view of “Political Development as Political Modernisation”, is basically the

extension of the previous two approaches. Industrial nations lay the fashions and set the

patterns in the phases of economic and social life. Consequently, many people expect the

same to be applicable in the political sphere as well. Cultural relativists like Lipset

(1959), Coleman (1960), and Deutsch (1961), however challenge the validity of

identifying the industrial experiences as the contemporary and universal standards for all

the societies.

31

To view “Political Development as the Operation of a Nation State”, however,

removes these objections to some extent. This view point is, indeed, based on the

assumption that historically there have been many types of political systems. The

political system of every community had its own political framework which had to make

structural and functional adjustments with the new model of modern nation-state. The

politics of traditional societies, therefore, must give way to the politics appropriate to

produce an efficient nation-state. The political development in this view involves the

development of a capability to establish and sustain the desired level of public order, to

mobilize resources for collective enterprises and to make and endorse the international

commitments and responsibilities. Political development then involves the growth of

potential to establish and sustain a certain level of public order, to generate resources for

a specific array of cooperative enterprises and to develop and efficiently uphold the

international obligations. This view suggests two main parameters to measure the level of

political development. First of all, the establishment of a specific set of public

institutions, that constitutes the basic infrastructure of a nation-state. Second parameter is

the controlled political expressions of the society in its experience of nationalism. Shills

(1962), Silvert (1964), and McCord (1965), have applied these parameters in their

narration of political development as the politics of nationalism or that of the nation

building.

The view of “Political Development as Administrative and Legal Development”

underlies the philosophy of the innovative colonial experiences. Strong bureaucratic

establishments and administrative structures are considered the bases of political

32

community in the European modus operandi. Weber (tr. 1947), and LaPalombara (1964),

associate the administrative development with the spread of rationality, secularization

and evolution of the legal concepts which in turn set the stage for political development.

While over emphasizing, this approach overlooks the vital aspects of the problems of

citizenship training and popular participation in the process of political development.

The concept of “Political Development as Mass Mobilization and Participation”,

involves another role of the electorate and new standards of allegiance and participation.

In some societies this becomes the popular view an end in itself in the pursuit of political

development. All the segments of those societies feel a significant level of advancement

with the intensity and frequency of public demonstrations with mass mobilization and

collective participation. Hoselitz (1952), Emerson (1960), and Greetz (1963), have

supported this view of political development. Shills (1963), however, has criticized this

view due to its stress on the hazards of either sterile emotionalism or debasing

demagoguery.

“Political Development as the Building of Democracy”, is the view that takes

political development as synonym to the establishment of democratic institutions and

practices. LaPalombara (1964), criticises this view with the argument that the political

development is embedded only in the strengthening of a set of democratic values and to

pretend that this is not the case in self-deceiving. Further argument in this case is that

democracy is a value-laden term while development is more value-neutral. Using the

33

edifice of democracy as a key to political development can thus be seen as an attempt to

impose American or the Western values upon others.

The perspective of “Political Development as Stability and Orderly Change” is

based upon the capability for purposeful and orderly change. Stability generally,

promotes stagnation and an arbitrary support of the status quo, which is not exactly

development except if its alternate is evidently a worse state of affairs. While attaching

stability with development, Deutsch (1963), however, declares that one way or the other

social and economic advancements more often than not depend mainly on orderly, sound,

stable and controlled environment. The main argument of this approach is that in modern

societies man reins nature for his purpose while in conventional societies man had to

adapt to nature’s orders. Political development thus can be conceived as depending upon

a aptitude to either control social change or be controlled by it. Riggs (1964), however

questions the questions the level, purpose and direction of change or of stability and

order. He also declares that the maintenance of order stands second to getting things

better.

The definition of “Political Development as Mobilization and Power”, leads to the

concept that political systems can be assessed in terms of the level and degree of absolute

power, which the system is capable to mobilize (Almond, 1963; Parson, 1964; Coleman,

1971). When political development is conceived in these terms of mobilization with an

amplified empowerment of the society, it becomes quite possible to differentiate between

both the purpose for development and the variety of characteristics linked with

34

development. These characteristics in turn may facilitate the preparation of indices to

measure the level and nature of development. This, however, generally applies to the

most developed and modern societies.

To view the “Political Development as One Aspect of a Multi-Dimensional

Process of Social Change”, is embedded in the perspective that it is somehow intimately

interlinked with some other aspects of social and economic change. This view is shared

by Lerner (1958) and Millikan and Blackmer (1961). This view declares that all types of

development are interlinked and interdependent. So, multiple social, economic and

political factors impinge upon each other one way or the other. Then various multi-

dimensional local and foreign influences are also there to determine the level and nature

of political development in a society.

Pye (Op.Cit: 45-46), has also noted certain other possible interpretations of

political development i.e. a sense of national self-respect and dignity, post-nationalism

perspective etc. Finally, without asserting any of these philosophical orientations or

theoretical frameworks, he refers to the themes identified by the Comparative Politics

Committee of the Social Science Research Council. These broadly shared themes include

equality, capacity, and differentiation. Even he does not declare these three dimensions to

fit easily together.

35

An encyclopedic review of all the different concepts of development has paved

the way for the researcher to devise a theoretical framework for the appropriate

operationalistion of the concept of political development in the present study. It

obviously requires finding a criterion or set of criteria to serve as a frame of reference to

determine the level of political development per se. It would be natural not only to expect

the criterion to be an idealized version of what prevailed or was supposed to prevail in the

society during the period under study, but also to be quantitatively measurable directly or

indirectly. Further, if the concept of political development is to be treated autonomous

than the criterion for it should at least be different from what are supposed to measure,

say, economic, social or cultural development. This limitation of a different and certainly

a pure political criterion is necessary to avoid indulging into the matrix of the

interrelationship between these different realms and whether development in any of them

presupposes any development in the others also. A standard political criterion to measure

political development for that matter is, therefore, the extent to which the members of any

society participate in the political exercise. Certain societies may be legally or actually

deprived of the right to participate in this process, while some others who have the right

to participate may not choose to do so. If the extent of the formal right of participation in

the political process is concerned with the total whole, then the actual exercise of the

right may be taken to determine the degree of political development. McClosky

(1965:254-255) has counted the five indexes of participation─ voting, political interest

and awareness, expressed party affiliation, sense of political competence with more

concentration on voting. Further, Verba, Ahmad, and Bhatt (1971:29) have noted that

participation is not a single undifferentiated entity. There are alternative modes of

36

participation that differ significantly in the ways in which they relate the citizens to their

government. Besides voting which is accepted almost without exception as the standard

political act, they have mentioned three other modes: ‘Campaigning activity’, ‘co-

operative activity’, and ‘citizen-initiated contacts’ (Ibid: 29-32). By declaring the act of

voting as the standard political act they have made it convenient for the present

researcher to focus, only the act of voting. This will be the second limitation of the

present research. Thus, a purely political act of participation through its standard political

mode of election is selected as a criterion of political development per se.

Such interrelationship between participation and political development is not a

rare one but is already traced by many researchers like Banks and Textor (1963), Pye and

Verba (1965), Pye (1966), Kaminka (1966), Almond and Coleman (1966), Riggs (1968),

Huntington (1968), Inkeles (1969), (Dahl (1970), Brunner and Brewer (1971), Verba,

Ahmad and Bhutt (1972), and Arendt (1973) in a wide variety of ways. Huntington

however, has seen it in the tension between participation and what he calls ‘political

institutionalisation’ as a clue to both political development and political decay.

Of all the aforementioned aspects, dimensions or definitions, Huntington’s (1968:

55), formulation seems more suitable for the nature and demands of the present study. He

(Ibid. 1968: 8-12), indeed, conceptualises the concept of political development in terms

of institutionalisation. The level of institutionalisation, he declares can be defined in any

37

political system by “adaptability, complexity, autonomy, and coherence of its

organisations and procedures.” The more adaptable and an organisation or system is, the

more well institutionalised it is and the less adaptable or more rigid it is, the lower is its

level of institutionalisation. As an acquired organisational character, adaptability is a

function of environmental challenge and age. Age, in turn, can be measured in three ways

i.e. simply chronological age; generational age and the functional age. Complexity is the

second criterion of measuring the level of institutionalisation in a political system or any

organisation. The more complex an organisation is, the more exceedingly

institutionalised it is. Complexity involves generally both the multiplication of

organisational subunits and differentiation of their various types. Relatively primitive,

simple and traditional systems are usually plagued and shattered in the modernisation

process. The more complex systems, however, are more likely to adapt such new

demands. A third measure of institutionalisation is the extent of autonomy which a

political organisation may sustain independently. At its more concrete level autonomy

involves relations between social forces on one side, and between political organisations

on the other. In this sense political institutionalisation means the growth of political

organisations and procedures which are not merely the reflections of the interests of any

particular social group. Coherence in the structure and functions of any organisation is

the fourth criterion to measure the level of institutionalisation in it. Coherence and

institutionalisation are directly proportional to one another. The more coherent and

integrated an organisation is, the more well institutionalised it be. Huntington has gone

further and has tried to show the interrelationship between participation and

institutionalisation through an equation as:

38

Political Participation

= Political Instability Political Institutionalisation

The equation relates political instability directly to political participation and

inversely to the political institutionalisation. It in other way shows that the less there is

political participation the less chance there will be for the political instability in a

country. Certainly, Huntington treats political participation as a ratio between political

participation and political institutionalisation, but with the axiomatic logic that if the

political participation exceeds the level of political institutionalisation, it will culminate

into instability. However, if the institutionalisation is more than political participation it

will result other wise. To see the same logic in another way let us assume that the term of

political instability is the opposite of political order or of political development as

Huntington himself has dealt with both, it would follow the pattern as:

Political Institutionalisation Political Development = Political Participation

Here political development is directly proportional to political institutionalisation

and inversely proportional to political participation. It means that if political

institutionalisation is occurring more than political participation in a society it will

reinforce political development, but if it is lagging behind it will exacerbate the process

of political development. So the notion of political participation does not go always

39

positive with political institutionalisation and the political development, rather goes

negative if superfluous, as considered by Huntington. He has seen the dynamic thrust as

coming from negative factor i.e. ‘political participation’, that whether it results in

political instability and decay or in political order and development depends upon the

capacity of political institutions of a society to contend with it through their adaptability,

complexity, autonomy and coherence. The Figure is showing the same correlation

through a diagram given in the figure 1.1.

Figure 1.1: Political Institutionalisation, political Participation and Political Development

High

Order/ Political

Repression Development

Instability / Decay

Low High

Political Participation / demand

SOURCE: Huntington, Samuel P. (1968:79). Political Order in Changing Societies.

Tolerable Range

Pol

itic

al in

stit

utio

nali

sati

on

40

The figure 1.1 shows that political development must be measured by political

institutionalization. Through this diagram Huntington asserts that political development is

not an inevitable path of progress however political decay is always a possibility. He

further argues that political organizations and procedures must have acquired value in the

perspective of the society, and a certain level of stability to endure momentous pressures.

Finally, Huntington considered the political parties as political institutions and has

declared that “The principal institutional means for organising and expansion of political

participation are political parties and the party system” (Ibid: 398). Focussing properly on

political parties and the party systems he opines that the parties regulate political

participation and the political systems have an effect on the pace at which participation

expands. The strength and the stability of a party or a party system depend upon both its

level of participation and its altitude of institutionalisation. A high level of participation

along with low levels of political party institutionalisation generates anomic politics with

violence. On the other hand a low level of participation is also likely to weaken political

parties in comparison with other political and social institutions. It is desirable for party

leaders to inflate political participation in the interest of their own party organisation. A

party having mass support is but stronger than a party with restricted support (Ibid: 401-

402).

41

Huntington’s this formulation of political development suits better to the present

study because it has taken political parties as an important institution of the political

system. The same is taken as hypothesis of the present study taken in the context of

Punjab. It is therefore hypothesised that the political parties could not institutionalise

themselves at a pace of expansion of political participation in Punjab which affected the

strength and stability of political parties and in turn culminated into the instability of the

political system. Such a state of anomic politics posed a colossal challenge to the political

development in Punjab.

Furthermore in his model of institutionalisation Huntington has given a criterion

for evaluating the role and contribution of the political parties in the political

development of any system. A number of scholars have explored in to the phenomenon

of political development mainly in Pakistan which is also applicable on the various trends

of political development in Punjab. A brief review of them all shows that they have

studied the problems in different perspectives as per the difference of their approaches to

view the problem. The works of these researchers can be categorised into four main

approaches i.e. ‘Elitist Approach’, ‘Marxian Approach’, ‘Ideological Approach’, and

‘Praetorian Approach’.

42

1.5 LITERATURE REVIEW

A number of scholars have explored in to the politics of Pakistan, but very few have

focused on the politics of Punjab. A brief review of them all shows that they have studied

the problems in different perspectives as per the difference of their approach to view the

phenomenon. The works of these researchers can be categorised into four main

approaches i.e. ‘Elitist Approach’, ‘Marxian Approach’, ‘Ideological Approach’, and

‘Praetorian Approach’.

1.5.1 ELITIST APPROACH

i. Robert La Porte

ii. Myron Weiner

iii. Stanley Wolpert

1.5.2 MARXIST APPROACH

i. Tariq Ali

ii. Mubashir Hassan

iii. Hamza Alvi

iv. Mubarak Ali

1.5.3 IDEOLOGICAL APPROACH

i. Leonard Binder

ii. Asif Hussain

43

1.5.4 PRAETORIAN APPROACH i. Simon P. Huntington

ii. K. B. Saeed

iii. Keith Callard

iv. Rafiq Afzal

v. Lawrance Ziring

vi. Hasan Askari Rizvi

vii. Raunaq Jahan

viii. Aysha Jalal

ix. Muhammad Waseem

x. Ian Talbot

1.5.1 Elitist Approach

The scholars studying the political history of Pakistan in the elitist approach are of the

view that Pakistan inherited a very strong military and bureaucracy. Both of these

institutions had been playing a significant role in the policy making. As a part of the

colonial legacy they were having a superior and supervisory position in the newly born

state of Pakistan. They always favoured the status quo in their own better interest and

never let the political institutions like that of political parties get flourish. Consequently

they destroyed the political culture, political institutions and the whole political system,

indeed.

Robert LaPort, Jr, (1975), was the first one to use elitist approach in his Power

and Privilege: Influence and Decision-Making in Pakistan. Referring to the la Michels’

44

“Iron Law of Oligarchy”, he opines that regardless of the democratic nature of the

organisation an elite class emerges to guide the masses. Elite groups in Pakistan,

however, are categorised by him into three main categories i.e. political elite, economic

elite, and social elite. The epitome of political elite in Pakistan is the top-level military

and the civilian bureaucrats, whose social base is traditional wealth and power. He again

attaches wealth and power with land in Punjab and Sindh and tribal leadership (and land)

in Balochistan and Northwest Frontier. Through the course of his study covering the

period from 1947 up to 1975 LaPort, Jr, (1975) opines that pre-Ayub period actually

paved the way for military rule along with the cohesion of civil bureaucracy. Military and

bureaucracy was the hub of political activity then and also in the times to come. He

concludes that the decision making processes in Pakistan tend to be highly centralised

and personalised in the chief executive. He assumes the Z. A. Bhutto regime initially

permitted a greater level of political expression along with a commitment to reshape the

power of certain elite groups. This change, however, was not accepted by the civil and

military bureaucracy who supported the status quo and they ultimately maintained it.

The second researcher to use the elitist approach was Mynor Weiner (1962;

1986). He concisely pointed out the major problem in the developing courtiers is that of

scarcity of resources. The nature of political system in any country is determined by the

fact that who controls, allocates and distributes these resources. The societies where

political institutions were established with the empowerment of the political elites could

overcome the military establishment and civil bureaucracies. Putting resources in the

hands of political institutions led such societies at the way to political development. In

45

the case of Pakistan he declared that in the first period from 1947 to 1951 all the

resources were transferred from colonial masters to the native elites including civil and

military bureaucracy. This was the period of transition. During the second period from

1951 to 1958 the civil and military bureaucracy established its hegemony on the political

system of Pakistan. This hegemony could not be broken by the political parties. That is

why the political institutions could not establish properly in Pakistan.

Finally using the same elitist approach, Wolpert (1998) studied the

situation from a different angle and accentuated that Muhammad Ali Jinnah had used the

vehicle of the All India Muslim League (AIML) to establish a country. The AIML was

established in 1906 primarily with the object to protect the interest of the Muslims of

India and to develop cordial relations between the British government and the Muslim

community. During the period from 1937 to 1947, Jinnah had successfully transformed

the party into a national movement. Though the party had penetrated down to the root

level of the society but Jinnah could neither pay much attention to the formal structure of

the party nor could he prepare second row of the party leadership who could replace him.

Eventually both the party as well as the newly born country fallen a victim to the

leadership crises. He further revealed four factors: i) ‘Regional Diversity’; ii) ‘Relatively

Small Bureaucracy’; iii) ‘Fear of India and a Rapid Growth of Pakistan Military’; and iv)

‘Adoption of 1935 Act and the Vice-regal System’, which lead to establish a dominance

of civil and military bureaucracy over the political system of Pakistan.

46

1.5.2 Marxist Approach

Tariq Ali (1970) opines that the elite class has joined hands with the international power

brokers, especially with that of the USA and UK. US had a considerable influence on the

ruling class of Pakistan through out its containment policy. During the decade of fifties

ruling class in Pakistan was following the same police on the recommendations of

America. A significant influence of the British was also visible. Feudal class and the

political leaders were being steered by the British. On the other side civil and military

bureaucracy were following the instructions of the American Lobby. In such a state of

affairs objectives were met by weakening the party democracy and the democratic were

finally wrapped up by the Martial Law regime. Thus only the internal strife was not

responsible for political decay rather external forces played more significant role in

derailing the democratic and representative institutions in Pakistan. Following the same

approach Dr. Mubashir Hassan, Hamza Alvi, and Dr. Mubarak Ali has declared the

imperialistic character of the political institutions and the political leadership responsible

for decay of the political and representative institutions of the country. Ruling class

actually was divided in to three main groups i.e. the feudal, the capitalist and the elite

class. Proponents of this school of thought consider that all theses three classes were

established by the imperialist powers to meet their own targets during the colonial era.

These very three classes were at the helm of affairs in the post colonial period. They

however joined hands with the two axes of power named the civil and military

bureaucracy in the post independence period. Such a close collaboration of all the ruling

classes with the ruling forces did not let the democratic and representative institutions

flourish. Natural outcome of this political experience was a class conflict which also

bears negative implications of the political development of the society.

47

1.5.3 Ideological Approach

Both the proponents of the ideological approach, Leonard Binder (1961) and Asif

Hussain (1979) have pointed out some ideological controversies as principle problems in

the way to political development in the society. These principle problems include: i) state

of religion in the newly established ideological state of Pakistan; ii) role of religious

groups in the political system; iii) place of religious clergy in the structure of the state;

and iv) the influence of the religious leadership on the political development of the

country. While reviewing the pre-military hegemonic period from 1947 to 1958, Binder

(Ibid) declares three main groups of the modern secularists, the traditionalists, and the

fundamentalists as the trend setting forces in the political culture of Pakistan. Difference

of opinion between these varying groups posed severe challenges to the political

development of the society of pluralistic footings.

Hussain (Ibid) has declared that the landlord elites, political elites, religious elites,

industrial elites, the professional elites and the military elites were the main contenders of

power in the political system of Pakistan. Declaring Pakistan an ideological state he

argues that religious clergy had a deep rooted support in the traditional society of

Pakistan. He also affirms that the political development in the country should be on the

religious grounds not the feudal footings. To him the initial problem of Pakistan was

more of administrative nature that that of political. In that phase religious leadership

could have played a very important role. But they were not given due space in the

political structure of the state. Even then they contributed significantly especially in the

formulation of the constitution of the religious footings. He concludes that when the

popular forces of the society were not given their due representation in the political

system, the civil and military bureaucracy and the feudal classes got a chance to establish

their hegemony on the state structure. This in turn caused a big damage to the political

development in the society.

48

1.5.4 Praetorian Approach

The figure 1.1 shows that political development must be measured by political

institutionalization. Through this diagram Huntington Asserts that political development

is not an inevitable path of progress, however political decay is always a possibility. He

further argues that political organizations and procedures must have acquired value in the

perspective of the society, and a certain level of stability to endure momentous progress.

Khalid B. Saeed (1967) has studied the political system of Pakistan, right from its origin

up to 1965. Studying politics of Pakistan from 1947 to 1958, he has declared it the

politics of conflict. He traces the reasons of these conflicts in the constitutional autocracy,

military and bureaucracy alliance, the raison d’etre of Pakistan i.e. Islam, politics of

regionalism and the political parties. Apparently these conflicts were between the civil

and military bureaucracy and the political leaders but their causes were embedded deep in

the political culture of Pakistan. All the political parties and the political leaders of East

Pakistan had no clarity and uniformity on the point of provincial autonomy. Similarly, the

politicians of West Pakistan had no consensus on different political problems and were

segmented into different groups, protecting their own vested interests. Politicians of

Punjab and Sindh had the feudal conflicts also, which culminated in turn into the political

feuds. Such a state of affairs had its impacts on the society which left the political system

unable to maintain and strengthen its institutions and to face the challenges from military

and civil bureaucracy.

49

Keith Callard (1968) opines that Pakistani idealised democracy but did not know

how to materialise it. He declares the initial period of Pakistan as the period of change

and uncertainty. There had been certain fixed ideas and few institutions whose validity

had never been open to question. Political parties have waxed waned and suffered eclipse

in Pakistan. Religious leaders have laid their claim to complete authority and superiority

and have achieved almost none. The state on the other side, has largely been run by the

Civil Service, backed be the Military. Military and bureaucracy mainly from Punjab have

carried much in the state of Pakistan as they did before its creation. Political leaders and

political parties were, however, unable to set the system right.

Lawrence Ziring (2003) also labels the responsibility of the weaknesses of party

politics in Pakistan on the political leaders, factional politics and the structural

weaknesses of the political parties. The creation of a civil society, to him, continued to

elude the nation and the socio-political balance was still maintained by a steel frame of

civil-military administration. The parties on the other side were not yet the disciplined

expressions of societal aspirations. The Punjabis dominated the political life, the

administrative structure, the military establishment, the economy and the general decision

making process in the country. This basically was an extension of the colonialism legacy.

Then the externalities of the political experience in Pakistan are another negative factor in

the development of political equation. The vast majority of Pakistanis are a gullible

congeries of factions, clans and tribes. Manipulation of these all by the traditional, as well

50

as, contemporary power brokers remains the central focus of the political experience in

Pakistan and gives space for the interference of civil and military bureaucracy.

Rounaq Jahan (1972) has studied Pakistan’s failure in national integration. The

study mainly focuses the Ayub period that is 1958-1969. While addressing the problem

of national integration in Pakistan she argues that that East West imbalance and the

problem of sub-regionalism in West Pakistan hampered the process of national

integration in Pakistan. Then the political leaders could neither evolve nor strengthen the

existing political institutions in the formative phase of 1947 to 1958.In the absence of the

political institutions and organised political parties the civil-military bureaucracy

assumed de facto political power and dismissed the politicians as superfluous and as

impediments to modernisation. She has referred the view of C. B. Marshall (1959:253),

that West Pakistan is “governmental”, whereas East Pakistan is “political”. West Pakistan

especially Punjab has contributed more to the civil-military administration. Such

assimilation, however, was opposed by the Bengalis. Vernacular elite especially Bengalis

already deprived of their due representation were further restricted from military and

bureaucracy nonetheless the decision making. Nationalist politicians of West Pakistan

and bureaucracy empowered the nationalist elements which in turn damaged the process

of national integration of Pakistan.

51

Rafiq Afzal (1976) opines that a long experience of Muslim leadership with the

British parliamentary institutions principally determined the possible political framework

of Pakistan. The period from 1947 up to 1958 represents the first experiment with the

parliamentary form of democracy. The main causes for the military intervention were the

immature and baloney politics of the political leaders and unorganised structure of the

political parties in action. Punjabi-Bengali political tussle gave birth to factions and the

politics of forward block in Pakistan weakened the party politics and the political culture

of Pakistan.

Hasan Askari Rizvi analyses the early period of Pakistan and assumes that

Pakistan was lacking in the organised political parties and their leadership. Regional,

factional and prejudiced political forces were engaged in political bargaining. Such

violations of political norms undermined the political culture. Resultantly political

institutions could not be established. This whole state of affairs left the political parties

unable to compete with the Punjab based civil and military bureaucracy. Political elites

on the other side could not take up the situation properly rather they themselves became

stooges in the hands of apolitical forces.

Waseem (1989) studied the politics of Pakistan with the view that the authority

structure of the state as inherited from the British India provided a focal point for the

country’s politics. Though apparently the political community seemed to dominate the

political scene through ideological movements, ethnic violence, election campaigns and

legislative activity etc. but it was the structure of the state which was primarily

responsible for shaping the political events throughout the post independence period. In

52

this way primarily the Punjabi legal and constitutional authority occupied the central

stage while the political actors had a propensity either to seek support from it or

otherwise to restrict its legitimizing potential.

Jalal (1969) had conducted a comparative and historical study of the interplay

between politics and authoritarian states in the post-colonial South Asia. She elucidated

how a common British colonial legacy led to the essentially contrasting patterns of

political development ─ military authoritarianism in Pakistan and Bangladesh and

democracy in India. The study unfolded that how in spite of having differences in forms,

central political authority in each state came to confront broadly comparable threats from

linguistic and regional dissidence, religious and communal strife, along with the caste as

well as class conflicts. After comparing and contrasting the political processes and state

structures the researcher had evaluated and redefined citizenship, nation-state,

sovereignty and democracy. Finally she has recommended a more decentralized

governmental structure better able to arbitrate between ethnic and regional separatist

movements. Another work by Jalal (1990) contains much detail on Punjabi politics

during the first decade of Pakistan’s independence. She links domestic and regional

factors with international ‘imperatives’ in the cold war era to explain Pakistan’s defense

influenced state construction. She puts responsibility on the feudal domination of Punjabi

society on the political structure of Pakistan’s economy.

Talbot (1999) has developed a sense of the Pakistan’s history by examining the

interplay between colonial inheritances and contemporary socio-economic and strategic

environments. The same importance he has given to the analyses of politics at regional as

well as national levels. Reaction of the state towards demands for augmented political

participation and devolution of power has also been of vital importance. Similarly the

sensitivity of minorities about the ‘Punjabisation’ of Pakistan is also not ignorable.

Finally, Talbot focuses the long-standing problems of weak institutionalization and

viceregalism which are rooted in the colonial legacy of the state.

53

1.6 METHODOLOGY

The authenticity of the present research rests on the scientific method, it follows. The

researcher has observed competing approaches to social science research based on

different philosophical assumptions about the purpose of science and the nature of social

reality. The three established alternative ideal-type competing approaches to social

science are Positivism, Interpretive Social Science, and Critical Social Science (Benton,

1977; Blaikie, 1993). Each approach is associated with different traditions in the social

theory and diverse research techniques. This linkage among the broad approaches to

social science, social theory, and research techniques is basically not stringent (Bredo and

Feinberg, 1982). These approaches are indeed similar to a research programme or the

scientific paradigm (Lloyd, 1986). A paradigm is an idea introduced by the philosopher

of science Thomas Kuhn (1970). It stands for the basic orientation to theory and research.

A scientific paradigm is a whole system of thinking. It includes basic assumptions, the

principle questions to be addressed, and the research techniques to be used (Eckberg and

Hill, 1979: 937-947; Masterman, 1970: 59-90). The positivist approach is used in the

present study to answer the basic questions of the present research. Richard Miller

(1987:4) observed that “Positivism is the most common philosophical outlook on

science”. Though positivism is broadly defined as an approach of the natural science,

positivist social science however is also widely prevalent.

54

Positivism is associated with many social theories. Its best linkage is nevertheless

to the framework of structural-functional theory. As the same framework of structural

functionalism is used by Huntington (1977), so the present research done in the

Huntington’s framework has applied the very same framework of structural

functionalism. Positivist researchers prefer precise quantitative data and often use

experiments and statistics. They seek rigorous exact measures and objective analyses by

testing hypotheses and carefully analysing numbers from the measures (Keat and Urry,

1975: 25). Following the same footprints the present research is relying mainly on the

quantitative type of data and is using election statistics for an objective analysis of the

participation of voters and the political parties in the political system of Punjab.

Furthermore positivism sees social science as an organised method for combining

deductive logic with precise empirical observations of individual behaviour in order to

discover and confirm a set of probabilistic causal laws that can be used to predict general

patterns of human activity (Longino, 1990: 62-82). As per the nature of the present

research, the deductive logic of enquiry is used for an empirical observation of the

political behaviour of the society determining the universe of the study. The same

criterion is applied on the behaviour of the political parties under observation.

55

Chapter 2

POLITICAL PARTIES AND POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT IN

PUNJAB 1849-1988

2.1 PRE-INDEPENDENCE EXPERIENCE 1849-1947

Punjab was the last province of Indian sub-continent to be annexed by the British in 1849

A. D. It however stood the first province where the Muslim majority was able to assert

itself and to make itself heard (Ikram, 1997: 197). Reasons were purely political. With

the shift from despotic rule of the Sikh suzerainty, the British gradually planted

representative political institutions, for their own convenience. It established the

numerical majority of the Muslims.

The Punjab which was conquered by the British from the Sikhs in 1848 A. D.,

also included the districts which were later formed into North West Frontier Province in

the year 1901, and from 1858 to 1911 the city of Delhi was also a part of Punjab. It also

included thirty four Dependent and Feudatory States. It will also be expedient to include

Kashmir and Tribal Areas ahead of the frontier of British India, which was politically

controlled from Peshawar. Total area of the British Punjab was roughly 2, 53,000 square

miles. It constituted two thirteenth of the whole of the British Indian Empire.

56

Since the day of March 29, 1849 A. D. when the proclamation of the annexation

of Punjab was signed, the administration of the province was placed in the hands of the

triumvirate, called the Board of Administration. All the three members of the Board i.e.

President ─Sir Henry Lawrence, members ─Mr. John Lawrence and Mr. Mansel were

already well acquainted with the area, its chiefs, soldiers and their culture. They run the

province effectively from 1849 to 1853. Main achievements of the Board include (a)

pacification of the Punjab, (b) general disarmament, (c) raising a Frontier force consisting

of cavalry, infantry and irregular regiments of tribes, guide corps and the intelligence

department. (Thorburn,:150-181; Nijjar, nd:36-42) The Board enjoyed wide powers and

unhampered control over all the, matters pertaining to Punjab. The members wielded

triple powers say civil, fiscal and criminal. It could even award death sentence and used

to exercise general superintendence of every moral and material development of the area.

This setup was not incumbent with the sophisticated regulations and technicalities of

rules but was governed after a “reduced and simpler fashion”. In 1853 A. D. Lord

Dalhousie abolished the Board and appointed one of the members of the Board, Mr. John

Lawrence as first Chief Commissioner of Punjab. The dissolution of the Board of

Administration opened a new chapter in the eventful history of Punjab.

A formal hierarchy of political executive in India was initially provided by the

Indian Act of 1784, which continued to operate till the replacement of the East India

Company by the British Crown in 1858 A. D. Such linage of political hierarchy used to

start from the London Government passing to the Central Government in India to the

Provincial and Local Governments. The structure of Home Government of India

57

consisted of two segments i.e. a superior parliamentary body known as the Board of

Control and the Court of Directors of East India Company. Provincial Governments were

already divided into the different categories under the Regulating Act 1773. In first

category the designation of the Governor of province was similar to that of the Governor-

General in center. The provinces in the second category remained under a Lieutenant-

Governor appointed under an Act of Parliament by the Governor-General in the Council

from amongst the servants of the Company in India. He had no Executive Council

(Dodwell, H. H., 1932: 595). The third form of Provincial Government was in practice in

Punjab, which was being run by the office of a Chief Commissioner, created by Lord

Dalhousie in 1853. Such a government was run with much greater dependence on the

Governor-General than a Lieutenant-Governor.

John Lawrence inherited all the powers and functions hitherto vested in the Board

of Administration. His control over all departments and sub-ordinate services was

absolute and all pervading. It included the defense and management of the whole trans-

Indus frontiers. Introducing administrative reforms he divided Punjab into seven

Divisions. Each division was in turn divided into small districts. Each district was further

divided into tahsils under tahsildars. To run this whole system Lawrence was to be

assisted by two commissioners, who were to be assigned by Financial and Judicial

branches of works respectively. The most vital amongst all the above mentioned units,

however, was the district. A district was far most purposes a practical independent unit of

which the deputy commissioner was the benevolent despot. The province inaugurated its

career with a fabulous set of administration, half of them were civilians, and the rest were

the selected military men who preferred the pay and power of administration to routines

in regiment (Trevaskis, 1928: 156). The concentration of power in the hands of one man

facilitated the rapid disposal of business. Lawrence left no arrears to clear his office

58

basket daily. This he did until on May 12 1857, when he received a telegram from Delhi,

announcing the siege of the city by the Meerut (A city in India) mutineers. Then he left

the province under effective control, during the stirring uprising of 1857 that reflects the

most brilliant part of his life. Never had any administrator of the company shown such a

perfect blend of organisation, energy and foresight (Fitcheat, 1907: 27).

It was on the first January 1859 A. D. that the Punjab and its constituencies were

constituted under Lieutenant-Governorship. Sir John Lawrence, who had hitherto held the

Office of Chief Commissioner, was appointed the first Lieutenant-Governor of Punjab

with its headquarters at Lahore. He was, however broken down in health, relinquished his

charge in February 1859 A. D., and sailed for England. Little did he know at that time,

that after five years he was to return as Viceroy and Governor-General of India?

After establishing that vast empire in India, the British decided to promote higher

Western education for a variety of reasons, by the middle of nineteenth century.

Following the same policy John Lawrence took the similar initiative in Punjab. He

introduced the system of teaching of Elements of English education and fixed vernacular

as the medium of instruction (The Punjab administration Report, 1858:55-56). Since, this

education progressed on the principle of downward filtration; those on the top of the

traditional society benefited the most from this new education system under the British.

This literary and professional element in the Indian society spearheaded the movement

for representative government and the party system that followed from it.

59

The introduction of English in the early stages would have rendered the whole

scheme unpopular and defeated its own purpose. Had John Lawrence foreseen that

peasantry would not send their sons to schools, but that the money lenders and the traders

would, he would have not taxed the peasants for the benefits of the money lenders’

community? Such had been the case throughout 75 percent of the villages of the Punjab

(Arnold, 1862:279-80). Secondly, the British rule in Punjab was also marked by

autocracy of the “non-regulated” provinces. The Autocracy of the individual officials

only reflected the government policy observed in administrative as well as constitutional

matters. The way Punjab had been kept behind other provinces in constitutional matters

had been repeatedly highlighted by many scholars (Baxter, 1977: 40-69; Zahid 1991:20-

29; Misra, 1976:51-53; Ikram 1997:200-202; and many others also).

The Indian Council Act 1861, established Legislative Council in Bombay and

Madras, and authorised the establishment of similar councils in other provinces. In

Bengal and United Province the Councils were established in 1863 and 1866

respectively, but in Punjab a similar council did not came into its existence till 1897,

thirty six years after the Act which authorised its creation. The Act did not require the

inclusion of any Indian in the Councils and no Indian was included there until 1909. The

next development took pace by the enactment of the Indian Council Act, 1892, which

increased the number of additional members of the Indian Legislative Council and

Provincial Legislative Councils to a maximum of 16 and 20 each, respectively. The Act

introduced the element of election though in rudimentary shape i.e. an indirect election

by select constituencies by public associations and municipal and other bodies. Although

60

every other province in India took advantage of these provisions, none of them were ever

extended to Punjab, where the council was established as late as in 1897 with its strength

fixed at nine, all of whom were nominated by the Lieutenant-Governor. The Minto-

Morley Reforms maintained the traditional discrimination against the Punjab. The Punjab

like Assam was allowed only thirty members, in spite of the fact that population of

Punjab was twenty millions, while that of Assam only seven Millions. Similarly, while

the proportion of elected members to the total strength was 53 % in Bengal, 48% in

Bombay, Madras and Eastern Bengal, 42% in U. P., Punjab had only 19% elected

members (Hussain, 1946:75).

The Government of India Act 1909, prevalently known as Minto-Morley Reforms

also maintained this ‘conventional discrimination, by giving only one out of 27 elected

seats in the newly formed 60-member Central Legislature (Ibid: 77). The state of affairs

at the provincial level was also similar with the strength of Punjab Provincial Legislature

restricted to 24, out of which only five members were to be elected. It was extended a

little later to eight members in 1912, and to sixteen in 1916. It hardly made any

substantial improvement if compared with other provinces, especially with proportion to

their population (Hussain, 1947: 75-76). The electoral regulations for election to the

Provincial Legislative Council were elaborate, as they were intended to secure due

representations of all important interests, namely, Local Bodies, Landlords, Chambers of

Commerce, Universities, special interests such as, Jute and Tea Planting. Elections to

Provincial Council were partly direct and partly indirect. In the case of direct elections,

franchise was restricted and fixed at a high property qualification, and women were

61

disqualified from voting. Communal representation was granted to Muslims for the first

time in these Reforms.

In view of the political agitation in India and the impact of war (First World War

1914-18) the British Government made a progressive realisation of responsible

government in India. This was followed by a new scheme of the Government of India Act

1919 commonly branded as Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms made substantial changes in

the structure and functioning of the central and provincial legislatures. At the centre a bi-

cameral legislature was introduced instead of unicameral legislature. The bi-cameral

legislature consisted of (i) The Council of States i.e. the upper House; and (ii) the

Legislative Assembly i.e. the Lower House, comprising 60 (27 nominated and 33 elected)

and 145 (45 nominated and 103 elected) members respectively. The Act also provided for

two seats in every alternate election for the Muslims. Now Punjab got the privilege to

send four directly elected members to the Council of States, and twelve to the Legislative

Assembly (PGGE 7, 1920: 120; Indian Statutory Commission Report, 1930:167-68). In

the provincial sphere also, the Montagu- Chelmsford Reforms brought about important

changes. The strength of the Punjab Legislative Council was increased to 94 members out

of which 23 members were to be nominated and 71 elected These Reforms enlarged also

the functions of the legislature. The members were given the right to discuss finance and

taxation proposals, to move regulations on the matters of public interest and to ask

questions on all matters excluding foreign relations, relations with the native states and

the matters under legal adjudication. Franchise however was direct but limited under a

strict criterion of qualifications and disqualifications for voters, eventually a little over 3

percent population was enfranchised in Punjab at the moment. Women, however,

62

acquired the right to vote for the first time. Under this Act, functions of legislatures were

classified as ‘Central’ and ‘Provincial’ subjects. The provincial subjects were, in turn,

divided into ‘reserved’ and ‘transferred’, to be dealt with by the Governor in Council and

the Governor acting with a Minister or Ministers, respectively. Thus, the Act of 1919

introduced diarchy in the provinces which, however, in the process of its implementation,

was found to be both unsatisfactory and unworkable (PGGE, 1920; Ibid, 1923). As for as,

the political parties are concerned, no elections were held on party basis in Punjab, before

1923.

The same system remained in action until the Government of India Act 1935

came into function. The Act gave a unicameral legislature to Punjab, although with a

changed designation. The Punjab Legislative Council was styled now as the Punjab

Legislative Assembly. Its strength was increased to 175 elected members. As regards

franchise, the Simon Commission in its report dated 27th May 1930, expressed the view

that franchise attaining under the Government of India Act, 1919 was too restricted and

suggested its extension, but opposed the introduction of instantaneous adult suffrage.

This disagreement with adult suffrage was mainly on the ground of political

complications in managing so mammoth electorate and partly on the ground of mass

illiteracy and lack of political education. The commission however, expressed its

inclination towards adult suffrage as an ultimate objective. Under these

recommendations, franchise was direct but restricted with an average number of voters

per territorial constituency was extended to about 16,000 with an enfranchisement of

about 12 percent of the total population and 24 percent of the adult population in Punjab.

(Bhagwan, 1964: 235-40) This Act and several orders issued by the Governor-General as

63

late as 1936, made profound changes. The Act gave a unicameral Legislature to Punjab,

unlike most of the other provinces. The Punjab Legislative Council was now named as

Punjab Legislative Assembly. Its strength was increased to 175 elected members elected

from different communities. The same system remained in action in the West Punjab

until replacement of the British government with the Government of Pakistan in 1947.

These were the conditions in which Punjab was lacking in the domain of political

activism. The British had planned to keep this province under despotic rule with less

political rights, due to its geo-strategic location. They, indeed, wanted to contain the

expansionist designs of Russia through Punjab by keeping it a military dominated area.

John Lawrence went to that extent that when the total strength on Indian Army was

twelve Divisions, four Divisions of Army ware deployed only in Punjab. Twenty seven

Districts of Punjab had army officers as their Deputy Commissioners. (Nijjar, nd: 61;

Zahid, 1991: 24).

Owing to these autocratic and authoritarian conditions, Syed Ahmad Khan (1817-

1898), left his residence in Delhi and settled in Aligarh for his opinionated reformist

work. He did not like to be under the “despotic” sway of the Punjab government (Hali,

1903: 445-446). The effects of his movement i.e. Aligarh Movement”, however, activated

the people of Punjab also. Similarly, many other organisations of the Sikh, Muslim and

Hindu were also established and control from abroad due to these very conditions. That is

why, the researcher, while reviewing the state and functioning of political parties in

Punjab has seen them in different perspectives.

64

Figure 2.1: Political Parties in Punjab 1849-1947

1. Indian National Congress (Punjab)

2. Kuka Movement

3. Brahmu Samaj of Punjab

4. Anjuman-i-Punjab

5. Anjuman-i-Islamia

6. Singh Sabha

7. Lahore Indian Association

8. Hindustan Socialist Republic Army

9. Arya Samaj (Punjab)

10. Central National Muhammadan

Association

11. Punjab Riyasti Parja Mandal

12. Anjuman-e-Himayat-e-Islam

13. Muhammadan Educational Conference

14. Young Men Muhammadan Association

15. Nojawan Bharat Sabha

16. Babbar Akali Movement

17. Khilafat Movement

18. Jamat-e-Ahmadia

19. Chief Khalsa Dewan

20. Muslim League

21. Punjab Muslim League

22. Bharat Mata

23. Panch Khalsa Dewan

24. Punjab Chief Association

25. Muslim Association

26. Punjab Provincial Muslim League

27. Khalsa Dewan Society

28. Ghadar Party (Punjab)

29. Sikh Educational Conference

30. Indian Independence League

31. Hindustani Association

32. Ahmadia Anjuman-e-Ashaat-e-Islam

33. Hindustani Workers of the Pacific Coast

34. Hindu Mahasabah

35. United India League

36. Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Hind

37. Central Sikh League

38. Akali Dal,

39. Gurdwara Reform Movement

40. Communist Party of India (Lahore)

41. Sanghtan

42. Shudhi

43. Tabligh & Tanzim

44. Swaraj Party

45. Punjab National Unionist Party

46. Rashtarya Swami Siwak Sang RSSS

47. All India Muslim Conference

48. All India Muslim Nationalist Party

49. Pseudo Riyasti Parja Mandal

50. Kisan Movement

51. All India Majlis-e-Ahrar-e-Islam

52. Khaksar Tehriq

53. Muzara Movement

54. Kirti Kisan Party

55. Muslim Unity Board

56. All India Kisan Sabha

57. Majlis-e-Ittehad-e-Millat

58. Punjab Muslim League Assembly Party

59. Central Zamindara League

60. Jamat-e-Islami

61. Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam.

62. National Progressive Party

63. Congress Nationalist Part

65

First of all, parties are divided into two different periods of the British period and

the post British period i.e. 1849 to 1947, and 1947 to 1988, respectively. The period from

1988 onwards will be dealt at length in the forth coming chapters. Secondly, the

researcher has categorised the parties as per the area of their establishment to see the

epicentre or control room of the different parties. Thirdly, the researcher had categorised

the parties in to different communities’ i.e. Hindu parties, Muslim parties, Sikh parties,

and the joint parties. All this categorisation is to see their structures, functions and to see

the nature of their influence on the society and in turn on the political system of the

province.

The figure 2.1 shows that in total there were 63 political parties present in the

province of Punjab during British period. Punjab had a multi communal society mainly

including Muslim, Sikhs and the Hindus with the subsequent proportions. That is why a

variety of Hindu, Muslim, Sikh and common parties were available in plenty in Punjab.

There were also a number of tiny parties emerging and abolishing from the political scene

or working only in a limited area and scope. Having very little or no role in the political

system of the area, such parties were not included in the present study.

The first purpose is to evaluate the covert and secret working of parties either

from abroad or from out of Punjab but from within India. The table 2.1 shows a list of the

parties which were established abroad and kept working there upon. The Table shows

that seven political parties were established abroad mainly in USA and UK.

66

Some of the activities of these parties were being controlled from their sub

offices in Germany, France, Canada, and etc. But the main centre of activity was USA.

The table 2.1 shows another feature that such parties were mainly established in the first

and second decade of the twentieth century. It may be due to the strict check of the

British government on such activist activities in India. Or due to the British-Sikh

animosity or obstinacy since the end of Sikh rule in Punjab by the British, because all

these parties were established and run by the Sikhs. Communist Party of India was the

exception which was established by Narendra Nath Roy in 1921 in Taskent.

Table 2.1: PARTIES ESTABLISHED ABROAD BUT WORKING IN PUNJAB

S# Name of the Party Year of

Establishment

City of

Foundation

1. Khalsa Dewan Society 1907 Vancouver

2. Ghadar Party (Punjab) 1908 California

3. Indian Independence League 1908 California

4. Hindustani Association 1914 Vancouver

5. Hindustani Workers of the Pacific Coast 1914 California

6. United India League 1915 Vancouver

7. Communist Party of India 1921 Tashkent

Source: Ralhan, O. P. (2002). Encyclopaedia of Political Parties.

The table 2.2 shows that the total number of political parties established in India

but also working in Punjab along with other parts of the country was nineteen. All of

these nineteen parties were established with in the period from 1877 to 1938. These

parties included all the communal shades of India i.e. the Muslim, the Sikh and the

67

Hindu. Some of them were working for safeguard of the rights of rural people and some

other for the rights of the urban population. Most of these parties were the Indian

Nationalist and were defending the notion of united India.

Table 2.2: PARTIES IN PUNJAB ESTABLISHED WITHIN INDIA

S# Name of the Party Year of Establishment

City of Foundation

1. Central National Muhammadan Association

1877 Calcutta

2. Muhammadan Educational Conference 1886 Aligarh

3. Indian National Congress (Punjab) 1893 Calcutta

4. All India Muslim League 1906 Dhaka

5. Hindu Mahasabah 1915 Bengal

6. Hindustan Socialist Republic Army 1919 Delhi

7. Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Hind 1919 Delhi

8. Khilafat Movement 1920 Aligarh, UP

9. Sanghtan 1921 Ahmadabad

10. Shudhi 1921 Ahmadabad

11. Swaraj Party 1922 Gaya

12. Rashtarya Swami Siwak Sang RSSS 1925 Nagpur

13. Nojawan Bharat Sabha 1926 Meerath

14. All India Muslim Conference 1928 Delhi

15. All India Muslim Nationalist Party 1929 Allahabad

16. Congress Nationalist Party 1934 Bombay

17. All India Kisan Sabha 1936 Lukhnow

18. Majlis-e-Ittehad-e-Millat 1936 Delhi

19. Central Zamindara League 1938 Kapurthala

Source: Ralhan, O. P. (2002). Encyclopaedia of Political Parties.

The table 2.2 also reflects that the parties established in India up till 1938 had

engulfed all the shades of the society representing the interests of the all the different

68

groups, one way or the other and leaving no space for more parties to be established.

Further that Punjab had gone self sufficient in party politics by the time.

The table 2.3 shows a list of political parties established with in Punjab and

contributing their due share in the political development of Punjab. Such parties had a

highest strength in numbers i.e. 38, as well as in their influence in the political system of

Punjab. It can be proved from the subsequent election results in Punjab. The table shows

that the first ever political party in Punjab was established in Punjab in 1850, in the name

of Kuka Movement. It was basically a Sikh religious movement belonging to what was

known as Kuka Sect. Being communal in nature the party was meant to work for only a

specific community. Later on the same party served as nursery to most of the Sikh parties

and movements. Then the last two parties which were established in 1941 and 1945

respectively were also communal say religious Muslim parties.

Both these parties were basically against the idea of Pakistan and were staunch

supporters of united India so were Indian nationalist. Secondly, both these parties were in

essence born out from already working parties. The founder of Jamat-e-Islami, Maulana

Maudodi was already working with Majlis-e-Ittehad-e-Millat, and Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-

Islam was a split group of Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Hind. The table 2.3 also shows that three

parties were established in the decade of sixties, again three more in the decade of

seventies and only one each new party in the decades of 1880s and 1890s. Later on

however, in the first decade of the nineteenth century there was a mushroom growth of

political parties numbering nine in total.

69

Table 2.3: PARTIES ESTABLISHED WITH IN PUNJAB

S# Name of the Party Year of Establishment

City of Foundation

1. Kuka Movement 1850 Rawalpindi 2. Brahmu Samaj of Punjab 1863 Lahore 3. Anjuman-i-Punjab 1865 Lahore 4. Anjuman-i-Islamia 1869 Lahore 5. Singh Sabha 1873 Amritsar 6. Lahore Indian Association 1877 Lahore 7. Arya Samaj (Punjab) 1877 Lahore 8. Anjuman-e-Himayat-e-Islam 1884 Lahore 9. Young Men Muhammadan

Association 1891 Lahore

10. Jamat-e-Ahmadia 1901 Qadian 11. Chief Khalsa Dewan 1902 Amritsar 12. Muslim League 1906 Lahore 13. Punjab Muslim League 1906 Lahore 14. Bharat Mata 1906 Lahore 15. Panch Khalsa Dewan 1906 Amritsar 16. Punjab Chief Association 1907 Lahore 17. Muslim Association 1907 Lahore 18. Punjab Provincial Muslim League 1907 Lahore 19. Sikh Educational Conference 1908 Amritsar 20. Ahmadia Anjuman-e-Ashaat-e-Islam 1914 Lahore 21. Central Sikh League 1919 Lahore 22. Akali Dal, 1920 Amritsar 23. Gurdwara Reform Movement 1920 Nankana Sahib 24. Babbar Akali Movement 1921 Hoshiarpur 25. Tabligh & Tanzim 1921 Lahore 26. Punjab National Unionist Party 1923 Lahore 27. National Progressive Party 1923 Lahore 28. Punjab Riyasti Parja Mandal 1928 Lahore 29. Pseudo Riyasti Parja Mandal 1930 Lahore 30. Kisan Movement 1930 Ludhyana 31. All India Majlis-e-Ahrar-e-Islam 1931 Amritsar 32. Khaksar Tehriq 1931 Lahore 33. Muzara Movement 1931 Hissar 34. Kirti Kisan Party 1931 Lahore 35. Muslim Unity Board 1934 Lahore 36. Punjab Muslim League Assembly

Party 1937 Lahore

37. Jamat-e-Islami 1941 Lahore 38. Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam 1945 Lahore

Source: Ralhan, O. P. (2002). Encyclopaedia of Political Parties.

70

Then 02, 06 and 08 parties were established in the second, third and fourth

decades respectively.No other party was established after the making of Punjab Muslim

League Assembly Party in 1937, which was formed with the collaboration of M. A.

Jinnah and Sikandar Hayat and was functional only with in legislature having no

structure of it out of the Punjab Legislative Assembly.

All the rest of parties established out of Punjab whether with in India or abroad

had to depend on the support of these very Punjab made political parties. However, the

communal element played a central part in the politics of Punjab through out the whole

British period. All this is clear from the election results and the party position there upon

from the period 1923 to 1947.

The table 2.4 gives a complete picture of the position of political parties in the

Punjab Legislative Council (PLC) and the Punjab Legislative Assembly (PLA) elections

in Punjab during the British period. It shows that in aggregate there were total fourteen

parties which could secure seats in these elections: i. the Akalis, ii. the Ahrar, iii. the

Ittihad-e-Millat, iv. the Congress Nationalist Party, v. the Muslim League, vi. the Khalsa

National Party, vii. the National Progressive Party, viii. the Congress, ix the Khilafatists,

x the Central Sikh League, xi the Hindu Mahasabha, xii the Gurdwara Prabandhak

committee, xiii the Swaraj Party, and ivx. the Unionist Party. Most of them were

primarily from Punjab.

71

Table 2.4: PARTY POSITION IN THE PLC/ PLA, 1923-1947

PLC ELECTIONS 1923

S# Party Name Seats

1 Unionist Party 33

2 Swaraj Party 12

3 Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee

09

4 Independents 17

Total 71

PLC ELECTIONS 1926

1 Unionist Party 31

2 Hindu Mahasabha 12

3 Central Sikh League 11

4 Khilafatists 03

5 Congress 02

6 Independents 12

Total 71

PLC ELECTIONS 1930

1 Unionist Party 37

2 National Progressive

Party

20

PLA ELECTIONS 1937

1 Unionist Party 98

2 Congress 18

3 Khalsa National Party 13

4 Hindu Mahasabha 12

5 Akalis 11

6 Ahrar 02

7 Muslim League 02

8 Ittihad-e-Millat 02

9 Congress Nationalist

Party

01

10 Independents 16

Total 175

PLA ELECTIONS 1946

1 Muslim League 73

2 Congress 51

3 Unionist Party 19

4 Akalis 21

5 Independents 11

Total 175

3 Independents 14

Total 71

Source: Yadav (1987) Elections in Punjab

72

The only party present in all the five elections was the Unionist Party. It could be

possible for the central parties of Muslim League and Congress to develop their vote

bank in Punjab only after the introduction of 1935 Act, that too with the support of local

parties. Entrance of these central political parties in Punjab resulted in to the communal

divide of the politics and of the political parties of Punjab.

Furthermore, the investiture of the representative institutions and the way the

electorate was divided in to water-tight communal (Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, etc.) and urban-

rural constituencies, the forces of nationalism and unity were disturbed and weakened a

great deal. Representation of Punjab in the Central Legislature from 1920 to 1947 was

distributed as: 04 seats for Council of States (02 Muhammadans, 01 Sikh, and 01 Non-

Muhammadan), and 12 seats in the Central Legislative Assembly (06 Muhammadans, 02

Sikhs, 03 Non-Muhammadans, and 01 Landlord). (PGGE, 1920: 120) The Government

of India Act 1919 injected the virus of communalism at the provincial level also. The

division of communal seats was done in such an arbitrary manner that the Muslims

(%52.2%) were given 40.4 percent i.e. 32 seats (27 rural, 05 urban), and rest of 59.4

percent i.e. 39 seats were given to the non Muslims. (NAI, 1920: 145) The situation in the

Government of India Act 1935 slightly changed. Here the strength of Punjab Legislative

Assembly was extended up to 175 seats in total (42 general, 84 Muhammadans, 31 Sikhs,

and 18 special seats). (Kapur, 1985: 311) Notwithstanding, Punjab where communal

competitiveness was larger than in most of other provinces was bound to suffer more by

the unnatural divisions created in the electorate.

73

Figure 2.2: Communal Distribution of Parties of Punjab 1849-1947

MUSLIM 1. Muslim Unity Board 2. Central National

Muhammadan Association 3. Muslim Association 4. Punjab Provincial Muslim

League 5. Young Men Muhammadan

Association 6. All India Muslim Conference 7. Jamat-e-Ahmadia 8. Ahmadia Anjuman-e-Ashaat-

e-Islam 9. All India Muslim Nationalist

Party 10. Muslim League 11. Punjab Muslim League 12. Jamat-e-Islami 13. Majlis-e-Ittehad-e-Millat 14. Anjuman-e-Himayat-e-Islam 15. Anjuman-i-Islamia 16. Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Hind 17. Khilafat Movement 18. Tabligh & Tanzim 19. Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam 20. All India Majlis-e-Ahrar-e-

Islam 21. Muhammadan Educational

Conference 22. Khaksar Tehriq

----------------------------------------- HINDU

1. Sanghtan 2. Shudhi 3. Brahmu Samaj of Punjab 4. Rashtarya Swami Siwak

Sang RSSS 5. Arya Samaj (Punjab) 6. Hindu Mahasabah 7. Swaraj Party 8. National Progressive Party 9. Congress Nationalist Party

JOINT 1. Lahore Indian Association 2. Communist Party of India (Lahore) 3. Nojawan Bharat Sabha 4. All India Kisan Sabha 5. Punjab Chief Association 6. Pseudo Riyasti Parja Mandal 7. Punjab Riyasti Parja Mandal 8. Hindustan Socialist Republic Army 9. Punjab National Unionist Party 10. Anjuman-i-Punjab 11. Hindustani Association 12. Punjab Muslim League Assembly

Party 13. Indian National Congress

---------------------------------------------

SIKH 1. Akali Dal 2. Babbar Akali Movement 3. Central Sikh League 4. Central Zamindara League 5. Chief Khalsa Dewan 6. Ghadar Party (Punjab) 7. Gurdwara Reform Movement 8. Khalsa Dewan Society 9. Kuka Movement 10. Sikh Educational Conference 11. Singh Sabha 12. United India League 13. Muzara Movement 14. Bharat Mata 15. Kirti Kisan Party 16. Indian Independence League 17. Kisan Movement 18. Hindustani Workers of the Pacific

Coast 19. Panch Khalsa Dewan

74

The same is visible in the figure 2.2. It shows that the Muslims being in majority were

leading in the sphere of political participation. Being more mobilised they were having a

big number of 22 political parties. As per proportion to their population Sikhs stood

second in developing political parties. They established 19 political parties. Third was the

ranking of joint parties being 12 in number. These were generally the Indian Nationalist

Parties and were sufficient complex in their structure to accommodate all the

communities living in the province. Hindus being in numerical minority were standing at

the last with merely nine parties that too were mostly established out of Punjab. Such a

sharp communal split of political parties portrays a polarised kind of political structure of

the province.

The Unionist Party however made strenuous efforts to cut across the communal

lines in the legislature. It was little successful too in this regard. But the elections of

1946 with a massive participation exposed a communal drift which resulted in to partition

of the province on communal linen, at the time of independence in 1947. But when both

these factors ─ water tight communal representation, and entrance of the central parties in

the politics of Punjab ─ joined together, they transformed the political culture of Punjab

in to purely a communal polity. The same was reflected in the elections of 1945-46,

which divided the society in to two streams i.e. the Muslims and the non-Muslims,

resulting in the partition of the province on communal lines along with the division of

India in 1947. The elections of 1945-46 were the last elections to be held in united India

before Pakistan gain its independence. Central Issue of the All India Muslim League’s

campaign in these elections was the demand for a separate country for the Muslims of

75

India. The party’s subsequent victory with 73 out of 84 Muslim seats in the Punjab

Legislative Assembly legitimised its claim to represent the Muslims. It also paved the

way for the partition of Punjab. Thus it can safely be concluded that the division of India

and partition of Punjab both were the outcome of an electoral process, mainly influenced

by a massive political participation.

2.2 POST INDEPENDENCE EXPERIENCE 1947-1988

The post independence electoral and political history of Pakistan has categorically been a

chequered one. The Government of India Act 1935 which provided guideline for the

1937 and 1945-46 elections recommended for all the Provincial Council seats to be

elected, and expanded the franchise to about 41 million voters by lessening property,

income and literacy requirements.

Table 2.5: ELECTIONS IN PUNJAB 1947-1988

Sr.# Year Elections for Franchise Party/ Non-Party

Winner

1. 1951 Punjab Legislative Assembly Direct Party Based PML 2. 1959-60 Local Government (BD’s) Direct Non Party N/A 3. 1961 Presidential Referendum Indirect N/A Ayub Khan 4. 1962 West Pakistan Assembly Indirect Non Party N/A 5. 1964 Local Government (BD’s) Direct Non Party N/A 6. 1965 Presidential Election Indirect Party Based Ayub Khan 7. 1965 West Pakistan Assembly Indirect Party Based PML 8. 1970 Punjab Provincial Assembly Direct Party Based PPP 9. 1977 Punjab Provincial Assembly Direct Party Based PPP 10. 1979 Local Bodies Direct Non Party N/A 11. 1984 Presidential Referendum Direct N/A Zia-ul-Haq 12. 1985 Punjab Provincial Assembly Direct Non-Party N/A 13. 1987 Local Bodies Direct Non Party N/A SOURCE: Wilder (1999: 18)

76

The post-independence experience of political development shows that

eleven elections were held in Punjab in total. Four of them for the Provincial Assembly of

Punjab, two for West Pakistan Assembly, four for Local Governments ( 2 for Basic

Democrats and 2 for Local Bodies), one Presidential Elections and two other Presidential

Referendums. Only four of these thirteen political experiments relate to this study, for

being held, firstly on party basis and secondly for the Legislative Assembly of Punjab or

of West Pakistan. Thus, after independence a general election, by direct voting was held

for the provincial Legislature of Punjab in 1951, on the basis of universal adult suffrage,

which was conceded by the government, in view of the growing political consciousness

of the people. (Ahmad’ 1960: 2-3; Vanderbok and Sisson, 1988: 121-42) The election

was held to the dissolved Punjab Legislative Assembly on the 10th of March 1951, on

party basis. The parties present in these elections were as follows:

Pakistan Muslim League (PML)

Jamat-e-Islami (JI)

Azad Pakistan Party (APP)

Jinnah Awami League (JAL) [i. Awami League, ii. Jinnah Muslim League]

The Communist Party of Pakistan (CPP)

The election resulted in a clear victory for Muslim League. It won 143 seats as

against 29 of Jinnah Awami Muslim League, 1 each for the Jamat-e-Islami and the Azad

Pakistan Party, 5 of the minorities and 5 of Independents. (Callard, 1957: 55) 143 Muslim

League seats were added with 23 more seats with the support of Jamiat-i-Ulema-i-Islam,

the Ahrars, and above all with the help of government machinery making 143+23=166

total seats. Only 52 percent of the total votes were cast. (Jalal, 1990: 148)

77

Table 2.6: PARTY POSOTION IN THE PUNJAB

LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY ELECTIONS 1951

SOURCE: Report on the General Elections to the Punjab Legislative Assembly 1950-51.

The table 2.6 shows these results and the party position. The results reflect that by

the time Punjab was practicing a dominant party system with the domination of Pakistan

Muslim League. Nevertheless, the first display of opposition’s strength in Pakistan came

in these very elections, whereby six out of twelve seats in the city of Lahore were won by

the opposition. It all was due to the excessive mass participation. Main opposition to the

Muslim League in these elections came from the camp of the Jinnah Awami League,

which was an outcome of a two-party alliance ─ the Awami league and the Jinnah

Muslim League.

The Awami League under the leadership of Hussain Shaheed Suharwardi

claimed to have the position of an all Pakistan Muslim Opposition. The Jinnah Muslim

S# Party Seats

1 PML 166

2 JAL 29

3 JI 01

4 APP 01

5 Independents 05

7 Minorities 05

8 By-elections 03

TOTAL 210

78

League was composed of the supporters of Khan of Mamdot ─ the deposed Chief

Minister of Punjab. A number of small parties like Azad Pakistan Party, Communist

Party, Jamat-e-Islami and the Islam League also participated in the election. Pakistan

Muslim League however, managed to win a substantial margin of victory in this election.

This was the first ever experience of election on the basis of universal adult franchise in

Punjab, and excluding local government elections it proved to be the last until 1970

elections. In the meanwhile, Government of Pakistan introduced its scheme of integration

of West Pakistan on 22nd November 1954.The scheme entailed all the units of the

Western Wing should be united into a single united whole.(Umar, 1958: 47-60) The

elections to the second Constituent Assembly of Pakistan were held on 21st June 1955.

The members of Provincial Assemblies of the East and West Pakistan served as Electoral

College for these elections, on the basis of proportional representation by means of single

transferable vote. Total number of the members was 80 (40 each for East and West

Pakistan.(Haq, 1966: 53-58) Since then, a policy of postponing of election was followed

by the Central Government, Muslim League politicians joined hands with the

bureaucracy to maintain the disguise of parliamentary democracy without holding

election from 1947 to1958.This policy ended with the imposition of Martial Law in 1958,

when all parliamentary institutions were abolished, the National and Provincial

Governments dismissed, and the National and Provincial Assemblies dissolved. The

political parties were banned. The Chief Martial Law administrator, Ayub Khan had

promised to restore political process, but it was to be with a difference. This was

envisaged in the scheme of ‘Basic Democracies’ which was announced in May 1959. The

79

scheme opt a status quo strategy to hold non-party local government elections rather than

party based national and provincial assemblies’ elections.

The first round of ‘Basic Democracy’ elections for eighty thousand ‘Basic

Democrats’ was held in 1959. The second step of Ayub’s status quo strategy was to use

these Basic Democrats as an electoral college for the election of President, the members

of National Assembly, and the members of East and West Pakistan Assemblies. Through

this indirect electoral system Ayub Khan was elected as President of Pakistan in February

1960. It was followed by the promulgation of 1962 Presidential Constitution. It was

followed by a bill providing for the formation and regulation of political parties which

was sent to a select committee of the Assembly on 4 July. The committee returned it to

the floor of the Assembly referring their inability to concur on a modus operandi. The

draft bill was put up to a vote and passed in effect unmodified on 14 July. The President

conferred his assent to the Political Parties Bill on 16 July, to be known as Political

Parties Act, 1962 (Act III, 1962). Political Parties were quick to legitimise their function

after its enactment. In August, 1962, Government appointed a ‘Franchise Commission’

to examine: (i) that whether the Basic Democracies were an effective and proper

mechanism for a true representation of the people, (ii) that should the number of the

members of electoral college be increased, and (iii) that should the franchise be restricted

on educational and property qualifications or not. (Report of the Franchise Commission,

1963: 1) A questionnaire was prepared by the Commission to get a popular public view.

In response to that questionnaire 2,155 out of 3,917 respondents opined that indirect

system of election for the members of the assemblies through Basic Democrats unsuitable

and inefficacious. 2,708 respondents favoured direct elections on the basis of universal or

80

restricted franchise, whereas 1,655 favoured indirect elections. The number of persons

favouring direct election of the President and those favouring indirect was 1,762 and

1,414, respectively. A big number of 1800 respondents preferred universal adult franchise

against only 908 people accepting restricted franchise with the limitations of property or

educational qualifications. (Ibid: 59) The Franchise Commission gave its majority view

that the system of direct elections on the basis of universal suffrage was widely approved

by the society, so the members of the National and Provincial Assemblies should be

elected directly on the basis of universal adult franchise. (Ibid: 28) The Government

however did not accede to any of the recommendations of the Commission. Eventually,

the Basic Democrats indirectly elected the members of National and two provincial

Assemblies on a non-party basis in November 1964, and the President of Pakistan in

January 1965. Again indirect party based elections were held to elect the National

Assembly of Pakistan and the East and West Pakistan Assemblies in March 1965.

The President craftily and intentionally held the Presidential election prior to the

elections of the National and Provincial assemblies. If he had held the elections of

assemblies earlier, the Government would have authorised others by design, by giving its

ticket to one of the faction leaders in rural area. As per the requirement of the

Constitution of Pakistan 1962, the National Assembly elections should have been held

prior to the Presidential elections, but this complication was handled by an amendment in

the Constitution. (The Constitution (Second) Amendment Act, 1964) The Opposition

already formed under the leadership of Miss Fatima Jinnah in the name of Combined

Opposition Parties (COP) to contest Presidential election against Ayub Khan in February

1964 was in a state of bewilderment to participate or to boycott these elections. Mainly

because the outcome of the Presidential election had for good or awful, seemingly cast

the die. Ayub’s victory had in point of fact checkmated the fast gathering impetus of COP

81

and more essentially fatally shattered its morale. However, it was simply astonishing that

in a mere three months of campaign that too in the face of numerous adversities the

opposition congregated 36 percent of the votes of the Electoral College. The polls for the

National Assembly and the Provincial Assemblies were held on 21st March, 1965 and

16th May 1965, respectively. These were also party based elections, but were contested

between the two main forces i.e. pro-government and anti government the Convention

Muslim League and the Combined Opposition Parties (COP), respectively. COP was

basically a six party opposition alliance formed under the leadership of Fatima Jinnah. It

included Council Muslim League, led by Khawaja Nazimuddin and Mumtaz Daultana;

the Jamat-e-Islami, led by Maulana Maudodi; the National Awami Party, led by Maulana

Bhashani; another National Awami Party, led by Wali Khan; the Nizam-e-Islam Party,

led by Chaudry Muhammad Ali; and the Awami League, led by Sheikh Mujibur Rehman.

As far as elections for the National Assembly are concerned, 672 candidates (312

East Pakistan and 360 West Pakistan) filed nomination papers for 150 seats. Six reserved

seats for women were to be filled by the Assembly, later on. Two candidates in East and

sixteen from West Pakistan ran unopposed. A total number of 419 candidates contested

for the remaining 132 seats. The PML contested 146 seats, COP 96 seats and the

Independent candidates totalled 148. The results gave a wide majority to PML with 120

seats. The opposition won 17 seats in East Pakistan out of which 5 seats were pocketed

by Awami League, 05 by the National Democratic Front, 4 by Council Muslim League

and 3 seats by National Awami Party. (Saeed,, 1966: 76-85) COP could, however won

only one seat in the West Pakistan. Although the PML won 80 percent of the seats but it

secured only 54.8 percent (East 49.64% and West 61.31 %) of the votes cast. The

opposition secured 25 percent (East 14%: West 11%) and the rest being achieved by the

independents.

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Table 2.7: PARTY POSOITION IN THE WEST PAKISTAN LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY ELECTIONS 1965

SOURCE: Report on the General Elections in Pakistan 1964-65.

It may be noted that in both the National and Provincial Assemblies, most of the

Independent Candidates later joined the ruling Muslim League, even though they had

contested the election against the Muslim League candidates (Sharif al-Mujahid, 1965:

538-51). Following these results the West Pakistan Provincial Assembly elections show

that a total number of 779 candidates filed their nomination papers. 47 PML and pro-

PML independent candidates were succeeded unopposed and only 99 seats were

contested. The results noted in the table 2.7 shows that in total 104 seats were secured by

PML (Convention), counting 96 general and eight reserve seats, 50 seats by independent

candidates and one by COP that was by Jamat-e-Islami. These election results ensured

that elections without participation did not lead to political change which resulted in

political changes being brought about by political participation in streets rather than

participation in the electoral process. (Ibid: 548) Owing to a long anti Ayub agitation, he

had to resign, abrogate his own presidential constitution and hand over powers to another

military ruler, General Yahya Khan on 25th of March 1969. This change over of

personalities proved to be the conversion of political and electoral systems from

S# PARTY POSITION

1 PML (Convention) 104

2 COP 01

3 Independents 50

TOTAL 155

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presidential to parliamentary and from indirect to direct elections, respectively. In this

way Pakistan finally succeeded in holding its first general elections on the basis of direct

universal franchise in 1970. The 1970 elections changed the nature of electoral politics in

the country. This change made these elections based upon mass politics rather than elite

politics, upon parties rather than upon individuals and played upon national rather than

local issues. On the 28th November, 1969, Yahya Khan announced his decision to hold

general elections in the country on the 5th of October 1970, on the principle of one man

one vote and that the elected National Assembly would frame the future constitution of

the country. On 28th March, 1970, he announced main features of the Legal Framework

Order (LFO) under which National Assembly was to consist of 313 members (300

general seats and 13 reserved for women) The LFO also abolished the One Unit System

and the old four provinces of Punjab, NWFP, Sind and Balochistan were re-established,

along with the Tribal Areas on July 1, 1970. Punjab was allocated 85 seats (82 general

and 3 reserved for women) in the National Assembly and its Provincial Assembly was

consisting of 186 members (180 general and 6 for women). (Report on General Elections

Pakistan 1970-71, 1972: 1-10) The main feature of 1970 general elections is that the

Assemblies were to be directly elected on the basis of universal adult franchise for the

first time in the history of Pakistan. The political parties were allowed to launch their

campaign without any restrictions on political activities.

The 1970 general elections originally scheduled for October 5 were postponed to

December 7 due to the serious floods in East Pakistan in August 1970. With the practice

of universal adult franchise, total number of registered voters in Punjab for National

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Assembly was 1, 63, 64,495, and for Provincial Assembly 1, 62, 74, 112. Total number

of contesting candidates was 460 and 1, 322, for 82 and 180 seats of the National

Assembly and Provincial Assembly seats, respectively. A big number of political parties

participated in this election. The parties which were active in the politics of Punjab were

as follows:

PPP Pakistan Peoples Party

PML (Q) Pakistan Muslim League (Qasim)

PML (Con) Pakistan Muslim League (Convention)

PML (Cou) Pakistan Muslim League (Council)

JUI Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam

JI Jamat Islami

MJUP Markazi Jamat-ul-Ulama Pakistan

MJAHP Markazi Jamat-e-Ahle Hadees Pakistan

IGD Islam Gonotontri Dal

PDP Pakistan Democratic Party =

Awami League (Nasrullah Group) Nizam-i-Islam Party (Ch. Muhammad Ali) National Democratic Front (Nur-ul-Amin) Justice Party (Air Marshal ® Asghar Khan)

In Punjab the PPP won 62 seats, PML (Q) 1, PML (Council) 7, PML

(Convention) 2, JI 1, MJUP 4 and independents could get only 5 out of total 82 National

Assembly seats for the province. (Ibid: 197-210) The table 2.8 shows that in the

Provincial Assembly of Punjab elections the PPP won 113, PML (Q) 6, PML (Council)

16, PML (Convention) 5, JUI 2, JI 1, MJUP 4, MJAHP 1, PDP 4, IGD 1 and independent

candidates pocketed 27 out of total 180 seats. These results show that the newly

established Pakistan Peoples Party emerged as a majority party in Punjab. The debacle of

the rightists may be attributed to the abundance of Parties with consecutive infighting

among them, their overconfidence and also the pre-emption of their central element by

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the PPP. The biggest surprise was the diminution of PML (Convention) which was

widely expected to win majority in Punjab.

Table 2.8: PARTY POSOITION IN THE PUNJAB

LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY ELECTION 1970 S# PARTY POSITION

1 PPP 113

2 PML(Q) 06

3 PML(Council) 16

4 PML(Convention) 05

5 JUI 02

6 JI 01

7 MJUP 04

8 MJAHP 01

9 PDP 04

10 IGL 01

11 Independent 27

TOTAL 180

SOURCE: Report on the General Elections in Pakistan 1970-71.

Some other interesting trends may also be traced. A radical change in the voting

behaviour is clearly visible. The People voted for parties instead of personalities or

baradries. They preferred second generation parties and discarded many of the first

generation stalwarts and the ex-military officers offering themselves for elections. These

elections also proved that the people are mature enough to participate in the democratic

process, thereby rebutting the Ayubian maxim that democracy is not suited to the

particular genius of Pakistan. (Sharif al-Mujahid, 1971: 159-171) At last it also proves

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the Huntington’s dictum of an interrelationship between participation and

institutionalisation, i.e.:

Political Participation

= Political Instability Political Institutionalisation

In an environment of free political activity a high level of political participation of

various political parties, the contesting candidates and of the general public with a voter

turn out of about 60 percent votes polled, with a lower level of political

institutionalisation culminated into the political instability which in turn resulted into the

disintegration of Pakistan in December 1971. Subsequently, the then Army Chief and the

President of Pakistan had to hand over the powers to Zulifqar Ali Bhutto the leader of

majority party in West Pakistan on 20 December 1971. A wider mass participation did

not spare even Z. A. Bhutto and insisted upon him to lift the martial law. Martial law

came to an end on 21 April 1972, the Interim Constitution having been adopted a day

earlier by the National Assembly and Bhutto sworn as the President of Pakistan. A third

constitution of Pakistan was adopted with the consensus of all the political parties in the

National Assembly. The Constitution of Pakistan 1973 was primarily of federal and

parliamentary nature, providing for bi-cameral legislature at the centre, for the first time

in the history of Pakistan. The next general elections were to be held before 14 August

1977, on the basis of universal adult franchise under this constitution. The very

commitment to a constitutional set up was being tested in the nation’s second elections

under universal suffrage, and the first elections in the history of the nation to be held by a

popularly elected regime. On 7 January 1977, Bhutto announced the elections to be held

in March with his assurance to the nation for these elections to be free and fair. (Dawn, 8

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January 1977) After the due dissolution of the assemblies by the then President, the

Election Commission of Pakistan appointed 7 and 10 March as the polling dates for the

elections to the National and the four Provincial Assemblies, respectively. (Weinbaum,

1977: 599-618) Owing to a wide popularity of the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party, nine

opposition parties joined hands to form an electoral alliance naming Pakistan National

alliance (PNA) on 21 January. Bhutto and his advisors were not expecting that variations

unravelling the Islamic fundamentalists of Jamiat-e-Ulama-i-Pakistan and Jamat-e-Islami,

the political moderates of Tehrik-e Istaqlal, or the habitually radical sounding National

Democratic Party could be bridged. Breakup of the main contesting factions was as

follows:

1. PPP Pakistan Peoples Party

2. PNA Pakistan National Alliance:-

i. Jamat Islami ii. Jamiat-e-Ulama-e-Islam

iii. Jamiat-e-Ulama-e-akistan iv. Khaksar Tahriq v. Muslim Conference

vi. Muslim League (Qasim) vii. National Democratic Party

viii. Pakistan Democratic Party ix. Tahrik-e-Istaqlal

The de facto leadership of PNA fell to retired Air Marshal Asghar Khan who won

the support of Maulana Shah Ahmad Noorani, Begum Wali Khan, Mufti Mahmood and

Professor Ghafoor to confer a tough competition to PPP. Abdul Hafeez Pirzada of PPP,

however, made an appeal to the Election Commission of Pakistan challenging the

allocation of a single symbol of plow to the PNA. He asserted that under the

Representation of the People Act, 1970, the united opposition was beholden to contest the

election with nine different symbols. The Commission accepted the legal argument of

Pirzada in principle, but at the same time advised the government to amend the law for

the sake of a fair election. Bhutto asked the then President of Pakistan to approve a

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revision of election law to permit a single symbol to a combination of parties, under his

ordinance powers. In this way Bhutto not only managed to appear magnanimous in

providing his opponents a reasonable fight but also avoided having the possibility of the

PNA’s boycott of the elections. The Punjab offered the major battleground with 115 of

the total 181 National Assembly seats up for contest. The results astonished every body

in balloting for the National Assembly on March 7. The table 2.9 shows that PNA could

win merely eight constituencies in all of the Punjab. Many contests in the province, once

considered highly competitive or save for the PNA candidates, were lost by better than

sixty percent margin. The PNA could carry no seat in the major cities of Lahore and

Rawalpindi.

Table 2.9: PARTY POSITION IN THE 1977 ELECTIONS IN PUNJAB

S# NOMENCLATURE POSITION

1 PPP 107

2 PNA 08

3 Independents 00

TOTAL 115

SOURCE: Report on the General Elections in Pakistan 1977.

The distortions of the single member district plurality system are plainly

illustrated in the Punjab vote. The PPP captured 108 out of 116 constituencies (including

one in the Federal Capital Territory) with just 61% of the total vote (Weinbaum, 1977:

599-618). These elections, indeed, failed to indicate a clear victory for democratic or

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progressive causes. At the same time as, the campaign stirred an unexpectedly high level

of voter interest and political participation.

Figure 2.3: PARTIES IN PUNJAB 1947-1977

S# Party Name

1. All Pakistan Awami Muslim League 2. All Pakistan Jinnah Awami Muslim League 3. Awami League (Wali Khan) 4. Awami League (Nasrullah Group) 5. Azad Pakistan Party 6. Combined Opposition Parties 7. Islam Gonotontri Dal 8. Jamat-e-Islami 9. Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam 10. Jamiat-e-Ulama-e-Pakistan 11. Jinnah Awami League 12. Justice Party 13. Khaksar Tahriq 14. Markazi Jamat-e-Ahle Hadees Pakistan 15. Markazi Jamat-e-Ahle Hadees Pakistan 16. Muslim Conference 17. Muslim League (Qasim) 18. National Awami Party (B) 19. National Awami Party (W) 20. National Democratic Front 21. National Democratic Party 22. Nizam-i-Islam Party 23. Pakistan Democratic Party 24. Pakistan Muslim League 25. Pakistan Muslim League (Convention) 26. Pakistan Muslim League (Council) 27. Pakistan Muslim League (Qasim) 28. Pakistan Muslim League(Punjab) 29. Pakistan National Alliance 30. Pakistan Peoples Party 31. Republican Party 32. Tahrik-e-Istaqlal 33. The Communist Party

SOURCE: Reports on the General Elections in Pakistan 1951, 1965, 1970 and 1977.

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The table also shows that three parties were established in the decade of sixties,

again three more in the decade of seventies and only one each new party in the decades of

1880s 1890s. Later on however, in the first decade of the nineteenth century there was a

mushroom growth of political parties numbering nine in total. The table also shows that

three parties were established in the decade of sixties, again three more in the decade of

seventies and only one each new party in the decades of 1880s 1890s. Later on however,

in the first decade of the nineteenth century there was a mushroom growth of political

parties numbering nine in total. Further significantly, the elections set off political

instability and disparagement rather than to help establishing political accountability and

trust in the country’s politics. The opposition parties deplored the polls as engineered and

repudiated their seats in the National Assembly or to go for succeeding Provincial

Assembly elections. Wider post election civic chaos and severe economic displacements

proceeded. Finally, a colossal conflict was warded off barely in the course of the

imposition of martial law (Ibid: 599). With these results and the subsequent outcomes,

the dictum of Huntington is further confirmed as a massive participation of the society

with a lesser level of institutionalisation resulted in to the political instability and

subsequently, jeopardising Pakistan’s ability to cope with the democratic values,

institutionalisation and in turn with the experience of political development itself.

An overview of the political scenario of the post independence period in

Punjab shows that in total four elections were held during the period from 1947 to 1977.

Three of them that are 1951, 1970 and 1977 were held directly on the basis of universal

adult franchise whereas the elections of 1965 were held indirectly through Basic

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Democrats. One common feature in all these elections was, however, that all of these four

elections were arranged on the party basis. Total number of political parties active in

these elections in Punjab was thirty three. During the first two elections the king’s party

that is the Muslim League remained in power with the help of government machinery.

The third election came up with wide political participation which culminated into the

political instability and in turn led to the disintegration of the country. The fourth election

also crop up excessive political participation, turned up again to the political instability

resulting in to the imposition of Martial Law. The table also shows that three parties were

established in the decade of sixties, again three more in the decade of seventies and only

one each new party in the decades of 1880s 1890s. Later on however, in the first decade

of the nineteenth century there was a mushroom growth of political parties numbering

nine in total.

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Chapter 3

POLITICAL PARTIES IN PUNJAB 1988-1999

To measure the potency of political parties in any system requires a standard of

measurement. Duverger (1978: 281) has mentioned three indexes i.e. members, voters,

and parliamentary seats for this purpose. The first measure becomes unusable because

the fundamental prerequisite in any standard of measurement is its inapplicability to all

the objects to be measured. No party qualifies this condition as cadre parties have no

members and the mass parties do not ever characterize membership alike. On the other

side voters and parliamentary seats offer common measures, provided that they do not

always correspond with one another. Generally, the difference between both of them

disappears in a complete and perfect system of proportional representation, which no

country has ever practised. Many countries however have experienced the form of

simple-majority system in which the difference between the number of votes polled to

and the number of seats won by a party is often very wide. (Ibid: 281) The present

researcher has observed the same in the case of working of political parties in Pakistan.

International Institute for Democracy and electoral assistance had

published a Hand book of Electoral System Design in 1997, which differentiated various

electoral systems prevalent all over the world as under:

i. No Direct Parliamentary Elections; ii. Plurality Representation (first past the post);

iii. Majority Representation (two round system);

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iv. Block Vote; v. Alternative Vote;

vi. Parallel (semi-proportional) Representational; vii. List Proportional Representation;

viii. Mixed Member Proportional Representation; ix. Single Transferable Vote (preference or choice voting).

Studies on the elections and electoral system of the country however could attract

very few scholars to take up serious academic investigation in to the phenomenon. The

early analysis of electoral behaviour in Punjab were generated by Ayub,s Basic

Democracy elections. Inayatullah (1963) analysed these elections with the view that

traditional social structure of the society and its group identities of family and biradari

(clan) determined voting behaviour in Punjab. Ahmad (1977) however argued that the

electoral behaviour in Punjab was determined more by class than by traditional caste of

kinship ties. Hamza Alvi (1971 & 1976: 1-27) also presented the same view that the

voters who are economically dependent are also dependents upon their masters

concerning their political decisions, however economically independent people may vote

on the basis of kinship and caste.

Then, Baxter (1971: 197-218), Sharif-ul-Mujahid (1971: 159-71), and Mushtaq

Ahmad (1973), Iftikhar Ahmad (1971), and Jones (unpublished) have presented a

detailed overviews and background of the elections, the candidates, the campaign and the

results with reference to a breakthrough in the feudal structure of the society. They all

had attached a change in the voting behaviour of the society with modernisation and

development. Waseem (1989: 263-66) has criticised the application of modernisation as

an independent variable to determine electoral behaviour for its shortcoming to overlook

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the key issues of the role of organisation, local leadership, class support and the

administrative structure of the society. Rather, he declares the role of the constituency-

level power structure in Punjab as an important factor to understand the embryonic

prototype of new leadership. Burki and Baxter (1975: 173-74) have presented the same

perspective. Jones has presented a thesis through an empirical analysis that the participant

revolution of 1968-70 had transformed Punjab from a ‘pre-participant’ to a ‘participant

society’. No other considerable study is available giving comprehensive analyses of

elections in Punjab. Waseem (1994: 1-2) has pointed out a number of reasons for it.

First, that few elections were held at the local, provincial and national level, in the first

two decades after the creation of the country.

Pakistan was deemed normally a non-election country, for a long time. Second,

that the elections were held under different arbitrarily imposed legal- constitutional and

electoral systems. For instance, the country initially started with an electoral experience

under the 1935 Act as adopted in 1947. The Constitution of Pakistan 1956 introduced a

unicameral legislature under a parliamentary system of democracy with a strong

president and an inter-wing parity through adult franchise and an electoral system of

Proportional Representation (PR). But no elections could be held under this constitution

and resultantly none of these systems could be practiced formally. The Constitution of

1962 introduced a presidential form of democracy and replaced the system of direct

election with a system of indirect elections with a restricted franchise not only for the

Central Legislature but for the Provincial Legislatures of both the units of Pakistan as

well. The subsequent elections of 1962 and 1965 were held under this very system. After

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the abrogation of the Constitution of 1962, General Yahya Khan gave his Legal Frame

work Order, 1970. The elections of 1970 were held under this LFO.

The parliamentary system of democracy and the system of universal adult

franchise was restored under this LFO on a strapping demand of political parties of the

country. The Constitution of 1973 continued parliamentary democracy and introduced a

bi-cameral legislature for the first time in the history of the country. The newly created

upper house i.e. Senate was to be elected indirectly under the Proportional Representation

system with single transferable vote (STV), of the members of respective four provincial

assemblies of Pakistan. Later Zia-ul-Haq, the then President of Pakistan held the General

Election 1985 on non-party basis in violation of the prevalent constitution. Such frequent

shifts in constitutional and electoral system of the country contributed further to the

already prevailing scarcity in the scientific study of elections in Pakistan.

Thirdly, repeated electoral malpractices have also discouraged potential analysts

to take up the venture of studying the phenomena of elections. Then, a domineering role

of military generals with their coups and prolonged rule did not let built the country’s

image as an electoral democracy. In fact, electoral politics in Pakistan is considered as a

case of electoral pathology lacking a true representation of the public opinion. Ultimately,

this deficiency of comprehensive electoral studies can be explained with reference to a

lack of development in expertise, skills and training in the domain of social sciences in

the country.

96

Exploring further, Waseem (Ibid, 1994:3) has divided the electoral history

of Pakistan into three different phases: 1947-1969, 1970-1977, and 1985- 1994. Each

phase can be differentiated with reference to a difference in its mode of elections,

constitutional frameworks and the electoral behaviour it reflects. The first phase covering

both pre-Ayub period and the Ayub era, reflects the practice of marginalization of the

representative institutions and keeping the decision making process under a strict check

of the State. So the real power through out this period was originated from constitutional

arrangements overlooking the mass mandate.

The second phase shows a shift in the electoral tradition from the

legitimacy syndrome to participatory function of elections. As the 1970 elections budged

the pendulum back to political mobilization. This indeed was a genuine exercise in mass

mandate replicating true public opinion with a full participation of political parties. The

election campaign for the General Elections 1977 kept this momentum alive with an

excessive participation of all the political parties but it was taken over by a controversy

regarding rigging in the polls.

The interregnum of 1977 to 1985 was persistently grappled with a debate

that whether electoral democracy suits to the ideology of the country or it was merely a

western imported element and was un-Islamic in nature therefore. The on non-party

elections of 1985 were boycotted by MRD* and were denied legitimacy not only by the

major political parties but also by the world opinion. The 1988 elections stood for the

* The PPP and several parties which had never been associated with the PNA formed an alliance named MRD to work both for putting an end to Martial Law and for holding free and fair elections under the 1973 Constitution.

97

restitution of party politics and ultimately provided legitimacy to the prevalent structure

in the country. These elections were held on the basis of universal adult franchise under

the electoral system of proportional representation. Following the same tradition all the

subsequent elections of 1990, 1993 and 1997 were held on the same pattern. Total

number of Muslim seats in the Provincial Assembly of Punjab was fixed at 240. The

Constitution of Pakistan 1973, stated in its Article 51 (1) that the National Assembly of

Pakistan shall consisting of 207 Muslim members to be elected by direct and free vote.

Clause 2A of the same Article reserved 10 additional seats were for minorities. Clause 4

of the same Article recommended reserving 20 seats for women until the expiration of a

period of ten years. This however could never be materialized till 1999. The National

Assembly of Pakistan thus consisted of 217 total members, out of which 207 Muslim

seats were allocated to the provinces on the basis of population, fixing the share of

Punjab at 115 seats. Further, Article 106 of the Constitution of 1973 fixed the number of

Muslim seats at 240 in the Provincial Assembly of Punjab. The same scheme of the

allocation of seats was followed as it is without any structural change in all the four

elections under study.

To start with the political process and party politics in Punjab along with the

whole country, the Provisional Constitutional Order (PCO) enforced on 25 March 1981

(PLD, 1981: 183) was to serve as the Constitution of Pakistan till 1985, while the 1973

Constitution was held in abeyance under the Proclamation of 5th July, 1977. It was

provided in the PCO that the President could constitute a Federal Council (Majlis-e-

Shoora) to perform functions as assigned to it by the President. The Governors of the

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provinces finalised the selection of the nominees by the end of 1981. After getting this

selection finalised, Zia issued a President’s order i.e. Federal Council Order, 1981 (PLD,

1982:123) for setting up the Federal Council. The purpose of the council was to make an

interim arrangement for association and participation regarding the affairs of the state. It

was basically a provisional arrangement of 350 members nominated by the martial law

government to serve as political support of the military regime. In this way the

government was carrying on the affairs of the state by repressing political parties and by

denying all political activates. (Baxter & Wasti, 1991: 79)

All the efforts of the Movement for the Restoration of Democracy (MRD) were

also marginalised by the state. (Burki and Baxter, 1991: 34) Zia’s continuation as

President under a civilian set up was yet to be resolved to satisfy the national and

international forces demanding for it. A referendum was arranged for a vote of

endorsement to the process of Islamisation started by him. The referendum was held

under Referendum Order, 1984 (PLD, 1985:449) on 19 December 1984. The Chief

Election Commissioner announced that out of 34,992,425 registered voters, 21,750,901

(about 62%) cast their ballots. Out of which 21,253,757 (i.e. 97.7%) answered in

affirmation to the process of Islamisation and 316,918 answered in negative, while

180,226 ballots were declared invalid. (The Muslim, 21 December, 1984) After this

referendum elections to the National Assembly and four Provincial Assemblies were

announced to be held 25 and 28 February 1985, respectively. The MRD boycotted these

elections because their demands for party based elections and restoration of the 1973

Constitution in its original form were not carried out. Participation of the people in these

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elections was highest in Punjab with a total turn out of 60.14 percent for the national

Assembly seats in Punjab and 62.34 in the Provincial Assembly elections in Punjab.

(Report on the General Elections, 1985: 79, 205) Although these were party less

elections but the voters manifestly rejected the politicians associated with Zia. Jamat-i-

Islami, the only political party allowed to participate in these elections as an organisation,

was also visibly rejected by the people for its affiliation with Zia. The President, in

exercise of the powers vested in him under article 91(2) of the Constitution, nominated

Mr. Muhammad Khan Junejo, a member of the National Assembly as the Prime Minister

who took oath of his office on March 23 1985. In continuation of the same the Governor

Punjab nominated Mian Nawaz Sharif as Chief Minister of Punjab. Term of this

Assembly was five years but it lasted only for three years, two months and nineteen days

and was dissolved by the Governor on May 30, 1988.

3.1 REGISTRATION OF POLITICAL PARTIES

Ban imposed on the political parties under Martial Law Regulation No. 48 on October 16,

1979, continued to remain in force under the Provisional Constitution Order, 1981. The

activities of the political parties were revived with the repeal of Provisional Constitution

Order and the Political Parties Act, 1962, became operative. The Political Parties Act,

1962 (Act III of 1962), was promulgated on July 15, 1962 for the formation of political

parties. It was repeatedly amended in 1963, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1985 and 1988, by

the respective governments, as per their requirement. Indeed clause (3) of Article 17 of

the constitution of 1973 envisaged every political party to account for the source of its

funds; however no law was made to make it mandatory for them.

100

The notion of registration of political parties and the way of their declaration of

finances and accounts for audit were simultaneously incorporated in the Political Parties

Act by the addition of sections 3A and 3B through the political parties (Amendment)

Ordinance, 1979 and section 3C by Ordinance No LIII of 1979. Both of these tasks of

registration and audit of accounts of political parties however, were suspended owing to

the ban imposed on political parties which lasted up to 1985. Though the General

Elections were to be held on non-party basis but still Zia feared that the PPP leaders may

contest and win these elections in their independent capacity. Consequently, amendments

were made to the Political parties Act, 1962, in January 1985. It declared that any person,

who had been the office bearer or even member of the executive committee of a political

party after 1 December 1971, which had neither been registered nor declared eligible to

participate in elections, would not be capable for a period of seven years to be elected as

member of Parliament or a Provincial Assembly. It was on December 30, 1985, under the

revival of the Constitution that the provisions of the Political parties Act became

operative and the process of the registration of political parties restarted.

In consequence of the complexities of the process of the registration of the

political parties, the Federal Government of Pakistan repealed the Political Parties Rules,

1979 by notifying the Political Parties Rules, 1986, on January 18, 1986 which also had

to be amended on July 30, 1987, to make it acceptable. . Under these amended rules, 53

political parties applied for registration to the Election Commission of Pakistan during

the period from January, 1986 to January 1987. The Commission ordered registration of

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only 28 parties, given in the figure 3.1. It shows that maximum number of political

parties i.e. 16 out of twenty eight were registered in Punjab.

Figure 3.1: PARTIES REGISTERED TO THE ELECTION COMMISSION OF

PAKISTAN 1986-87 ________________________________________________________________________

1. Aalmi Majlis-e-Ahrar-e-Islam, Lahore. 2. Al-Mashriqi Khaksar Tehrik, Lahore 3. Dehat Ittehad Party, Sahiwal. 4. Ghareeb Awam Party, Karachi. 5. Jamaat Ahl-e-Sunnat Pakistan, Lahore. 6. Jamaat-i-Islami Pakistan, Lahore. 7. Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam Pakistan, Lahore. 8. Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Pakistan, Lahore. 9. Khaksar Tehrik Pakistan, Lahore. 10. Majlis-e-Ahrar-e-Islam Pakistan, Lahore. 11. Markazi Jamiat-e-Ahl-e-Hadees Pakistan, Lahore. 12. National Peoples Party, Karachi. 13. Pakistan Awami League, Karachi. 14. Pakistan Baloch Ittehad Party, Karachi. 15. Pakistan Christian National Party, Lahore. 16. Pakistan Himayat Tehreek Pakistan, Karachi. 17. Pakistan Ittehad Tehreek, Karachi. 18. Pakistan Masihi League, Sialkot. 19. Pakistan Musawaat Party, Lahore. 20. Pakistan Muslim League, Islamabad. 21. Pakistan Muslim Mahaz, Lahore. 22. Pakistan National League, Karachi. 23. Pakistan National Masihi Kashthar Party, Karachi. 24. Pakistan Shia Political Party, Lahore. 25. Pakistan United Minorities Council, Peshawar. 26. Progressive Peoples Party Pakistan, Karachi. 27. Tehrik-e-Istaqlal Pakistan, Rawalpindi. 28. Tehrik-e-Tahaffuz-i-Azmat-i-Insani, Karachi.

________________________________________________________________________ SOURCE: Report of the General Elections 1988, Vol. I, Election Commission of

Pakistan.

When this process of registration of political parties was still in progress, Ms.

Benazir Bhutto challenged the Political Parties Act, 1962, and all its subsequent

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amendments through a Constitutional Petition in the Supreme Court of Pakistan in 1987.

The Supreme Court, after hearing the parties at length, announced its Judgement on 20

June 1988. It was a straight forward rebuff to Zia who had dissolved the Assemblies on

29 May 1988, and announced the next elections to be held on the non-party basis. This

judgement not only struck down the provisions relating to the registration of political

parties but also paved the way for the coming elections to be held on party basis in

November 1988.

On the other side, the assemblies elected on a non-party-basis election in February

1988, had already been converted into party-based bodies. During his Prime Minister ship

Junejo revived the Muslim League and other registered parties were allowed to work and

to mobilize political participation.(Husain, 1990: 245-47) In order to strengthen himself

as a political leader Junejo got himself elected not only as president of the All India

Muslim League but also the leader of the Muslim League Parliamentary Party. The same

practice was followed by the Chief Ministers in the provinces. Even after dismissing the

Junejo’s Government, Zia himself supported Chief Minister Punjab Nawaz Sharif and his

henchmen to take on Junejo in side the Muslim League. Eventually, the two factions

headed by Junejo and Nawaz had a collision in the meeting of the Muslim League in

July/August 1988. Nawaz won the game with the support of Zia. (Joshi, 1995:77; Arif,

1995:392)

103

3.2 REVIVAL OF THE PARTY POLITICS

This apolitical era ended with the death of Zia in an air crash on 17 December 1988. The

Chairman of Senate, Mr. Ghulam Ishaq Khan took over as Acting President of Pakistan

and announced in his first televised address to the nation that free, fair and impartial

elections will be held as per scheduled. The elections to the National and Provincial

Assemblies were held on 16 and 19 November 1988 respectively. According to Article

51 of the Constitution of 1973, the National Assembly consisted of 237 seats in total (207

Muslim Seats, 10 additional seats for minorities, and 20 reserved seats for women). Out

of total 207 Muslim seats in the National Assembly 116 were allocated to Punjab.

Provincial Assembly of Punjab was consisting of 260 members (240 Muslim seats, 8

minority seats, and 12 seats for women).

Here the researcher feels it inevitable to mention the limitations of this study. First

that, the present study will be dealing only with the majority community seats, because

their wider influence on the political system. It indeed constitutes an absolute majority

and minorities having only 16 seats (10 in National Assembly and 6 in Provincial

Assembly) out of 497 (237 NA and 260 PP) make no significant impact on the system.

Second limitation of the study is that it will not deal with the women seats also because

they are filled through an indirect election, by the elected members of the National and

the Provincial Assemblies. Third limitation is that the study will not analyse the election

to Senate seats, for their also being indirect election. So only 116 seats allocated to

Punjab in the National Assembly and 240 Muslim seats in the Provincial Assembly of

104

Punjab lie in the domain of the present study for the reason that they are properly

contested trough direct elections with a wider political participation of the masses.

3.3 POLITICAL PARTIES IN POLITICS 1988

When election campaign started for the party based election after eleven years, it caught a

high level of momentum. A large number of 77 political parties applied to the Election

Commission of Pakistan for symbol. After hearing all the representatives of these parties,

the commission allocated symbols to 32 political parties (see Figure 3.2) and allowed

them to participate in the election.

The IJI, (noted at No. 5, in the figure) a major player in the politics of Punjab

during this period was basically a nine party’s alliance including: i. Pakistan Muslim

League, ii. National Peoples Party (Jatoi), iii. Jamat-i-Islami Pakistan, iv. Jamiat-ul-

Ulema-e-Islam, v. Nizma-e-Mustafa Group, vi. Markazi Jamiat-e-Ahl-eHadith (Lakhnavi

Group), vii. Hizbullah Jihad, viii. Jamiat-e-Mushaikh Pakistan, and ix. Azad Group.

105

Figure 3.2: LIST OF POLITICAL PARTIES PARTICIPATING IN THE GENERAL ELECTIONS 1988

______________________________________________________________________

1. Awami National Party

2. Awami National Party (Ainee

Group)

3. Balochistan National

Alliance

4. Hazara Front

5. Islami Jamhoori Ittehad

6. Jamaat-e-Ahl-e-Sunnat

7. Jamiat-e-Ahl-e-Hadees

Pakistan.

8. Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam

(Darkhasti Group)

9. Jamiiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam (F)

10. Movement for the

Restoration of Democracy

11. Muslim Solidarity Movement

12. National Democratic Party

13. National Muslim League

(Muhasaba Group)

14. National Peoples Party

(Khar)

15. Pakistan Awami Ittehad

16. Pakistan Democratic Party

17. Pakistan Insaf Party

18. Pakistan Mazdur Kissan Party

19. Pakistan Milli Awami Ittehad

20. Pakistan Muslim League (Forward

Block)

21. Pakistan Muslim League (Qaiyum)

22. Pakistan Muslim League (Qasim)

23. Pakistan National Democratic

Alliance

24. Pakistan NationalParty

25. Pakistan Peoples party

26. Pakistan Qaumi Labour Party

27. Pakistan Qaumi Mahaz-e-Azadi

28. Progressive Peoples Party

29. Punjabi Pakhtoon Ittehad

30. Tehreek-e-Inqilab-e-Islam

31. Tehrik-e-Nafaz-e-Fiqa-e-Jafaria

32. Wattan Party

______________________________________________________________________ SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan. Report of the General Elections 1988, V. I.

106

3.3.1 Party Position in 1988 Elections in Punjab

General elections 1988 were held on 16 and 19 November for the National Assemblies

respectively. 857 candidates for 115 National Assembly seats in Punjab and 2752

candidates for 240 Muslim seats of the Provincial Assembly of Punjab contested the

election. (Report of the General Election 1988, V. I: 148-49) Total number of registered

voters in for the National Assembly seats in Punjab was 28080896, out of which

13055024 (46.49 % of the total votes polled) votes were polled. After excluding 195418

rejected votes (1.49% of the votes polled), total number of valid votes polled

was12859609. On the other side the total number of registered voters for 240 Muslim

constituencies of the Provincial Assembly of Punjab were 28280465, against which

12820152 valid votes were polled. (Ibid: 196-7) The party position emerging as a result

of these elections is given in the table 3.1. The table deals with the party position, number

of candidates from different parties, valid votes polled and their percentage by the parties,

and the seats secured by them, mainly with reference to the Provincial Assembly of

Punjab. It also gives the number of seats secured by these parties in the National

Assembly seats allocated to Punjab.

The table 3.1 shows that in total 1611 candidates were contesting, out of which

844 came as independent candidates and 767 came with the party affiliation, against 240

Muslim seats in the Provincial Assembly of Punjab. The independent candidates were

able to pocket 2929733 valid votes (22.85 %) securing 33 seats (13.75 %).

107

Table 3.1: PARTY POSITION IN THE GENERAL ELECTION 1988 IN PUNJAB

PROVINCIAL ASSEMBLY OF PUNJAB NO. OF

SEATS

S.

#

Name of Party Candidates Valid votes %age of valid

votes

P.P. N.A.

1 IJI 228 4484803 34.98 108 45

2 PPP 238 4380427 34.17 97 53

3 PAI 142 622983 4.86 2 3

4 PDP 17 73726 0.57 2 1

5 NPP (K) 42 146662 1.14 1 1

6 JUI (F) 25 76534 0.53 1

7 JUI (D) 10 8300 0.06 -

8 ANP 6 13605 0.11 -

9 PML (Q) 4 2108 O.O2 -

10 WP 1 1069 0.01 -

11 TNFJ 19 17601 0.14 -

12 Other Parties 35 71601 0.56 -

13 Independent 844 2929733 22.85 33 12

TOTAL 1611 12820152 100.00 240 115

SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan, Report of the General Elections, 1988, Vol. 1, Election Commission of Pakistan, Islamabad.

All the rest of 77.15 percent (100 - 22.85) votes were polled by six

different parties with 86.25 % percent (207) of the total seats. This lacuna of 9.1 percent

(86.25-77.15) shows that the independent candidates polled more votes as compared to

the number of seats they secured and the parties pocketed fewer votes but more number

of seats.

108

Though a major portion of votes was polled by the parties but still a considerable

number of votes and seats secured by independent candidates reflect weakness of the

parties. Presence of such a big number of independent candidates itself reflects this

weakness and a substantial influence of individuals on the politics of Punjab. Secondly,

the table shows that a big number of 205 seats (108 + 97) were won by the two main

parties i.e. IJI and PPP. Though IJI was a nine party’s alliance, but still the results reveal

that Punjab was on its way forward to the bi-party system. Thirdly, the table shows that

only 6 seats were caught by the four parties i.e. 2 each by PAI and PDP, and 1 each by

NPP (K) and JUI (F). None of the other parties, including the small parties like NDP,

PIP, PMKP, PML (MQ), PNDA, PNP, PQLP, PQMA, and ANP (A), could win even a

single seat. Fourthly, the table shows that IJI nominated 228 members as compared to

the 238 members by the PPP. IJI pocketed 4484803 votes (34.95%) against the 4380427

votes (34.17) of PPP. This difference of only 0.81 percent i.e. 104376 votes culminated

into a difference of 11 seats (108-97) between both the parties. It means that eleven seats

were decided with an average difference of 9488 votes per seat. On the other side a

reverse difference of 11 seats (53-45) is perversely lying in the National Assembly seats

in Punjab. Here PPP is getting 11 seats more that that of IJI. Lastly, the table shows that

all the parties which secured no seat nominated 75 candidates all over the province but

could get only114284 votes i.e. 0.76 percent of the total votes polled.

Though the PPP had a won popular majority at the National level by winning 93

seats against the 54 seats of IJI in the National Assembly, but still the situation in Punjab

was very difficult for it, even with a big number of 45 seats in the Provincial Assembly of

109

Punjab. Benazir Bhutto formed government at the centre by forging an alliance with

MQM, and JUI (F), she also won over some of the independent candidates later on. The

situation however reversed in Punjab. The IJI already had 45 percent seats (108) against

40.42 percent seats (97) of PPP and by winning 32 independent candidates it got

sufficient majority of 58.3 percent (108+32) to form a government. It formed the

government in Punjab with Nawaz Sharif as its Chief Minister. The PPP did every thing

possible within its influence to thwart this state of affairs in Punjab but could not succeed.

The President of Pakistan and the establishment extended their support to IJI to keep

Benazir under check by having a government of the opposition in the major province of

Punjab. Mian Manzoor Ahmad wattoo of IJI continued as Speaker of the assembly till

November 7, 1990. Sardar Hassan Akhtar Mokal of the same party was elected as Deputy

Speaker of the assembly, who remained in this office till the dissolution of the assembly

on August 6, 1990. The office of the Leader of the Opposition was held by Sardar Farooq

Ahmad Khan Leghari of PPP, who was replaced by another member of his own party

Rana Shoukat Mahmood on December 26, 1988. He ran this office till August 6, 1990.

The term of the Assembly was five years but, the Governor dissolved the assembly on the

advice of the Chief Minister on August 6, 1990. This dissolution was indeed in

continuation of the conflict between the President of Pakistan and the Prime Minister of

Pakistan over the exercise of powers, especially in the appointment of military chiefs and

the judges of the Supreme Court of Pakistan. This conflict resulted in to the dissolution of

the National Assembly followed by the dissolution of the provincial assemblies of the all

the four provinces of Pakistan but in two different styles.

110

In two provinces of Punjab and Balochistan, where there were non PPP

governments, the concerned Chief Ministers advised their respective Governors to

dissolve their respective provincial assemblies under clause (1) of Article 112 of the

Constitution of Pakistan 1973. The Governors of other two provinces of Sindh and

NWFP, having the PPP government, had to exercise their discretionary powers to

dissolve their respective provincial assemblies under clause (2b) of Article 112 of the

constitution. Resultantly, the orders of the dissolution of these two provinces were

challenged in their respective High Courts, nonetheless with no fruitful result. The

dissolution of the provincial assemblies of Punjab and Balochistan were welcomed by the

non PPP governments of the provinces, so were not challenged in any court of the

country. Through the course of its working for a period of only one year, 8 months and 7

days, the Provincial Assembly of Punjab held a total number of 95 sittings over 11

sessions. The Assembly passed 17 Acts during its working. (Proceedings of the

Provincial Assembly of Punjab)

3.4 POLITICAL PARTIES IN POLITICS 1990

After the removal of the PPP government in Centre and the IJI government in Punjab, the

President Ghulam Ishaq Khan battered the powers of the State to appoint the partisan

caretaker cabinets at the federal as well as provincial level. All the nominees of the

caretaker setup at both the levels mainly from opposition and were well known for their

open hostility to the Pakistan Peoples Party. Ghulam Mustafa Jatoi, the leader of

opposition in the erstwhile National Assembly was appointed as the caretaker Prime

111

Minister. Similarly, Ghulam Haider Wyne was appointed as the caretaker Chief Minister

of Punjab. He was a hand-picked nominee of the former Chief Minister of Punjab, Mian

Muhammad Nawaz Sharif. Wyne provided all the resources of the provincial government

of Punjab to Nawaz Sharif and campaigned for him throughout Punjab very openly. In

reward of these very services Wyne was subsequently elected the Chief Minister of

Punjab in the IJI government. Such caretakers had the backing of the establishment and

of the President to make it sure that the PPP would not return to power and the favourites

of the President would get power at all the levels.

The Figure 3.3 shows that the impetus of the political parties for participation in

this election was same as in the General Elections 1988. As number of parties

participating in this election was same i.e. 32, but the parties in the field were not the

same. Only first eleven parties, given in column one, were the parties already present in

the 1988 elections.

The twelfth party in the list ─ Punjabi Pakhtoon Ittehad was also in the previous

election, but this time it was split into two groups i.e. Sarwar Awan Group and Mir Hazar

Khan Group. Last nineteen parties given in the second column were all the new parties

coming in this election for the first time. PDA noted at number 27 was basically a four

party alliance out of which first three parties (PML (Q), PPP, and TNFJ) were the old

parties already present in 1988 election, whereas the fourth party i.e. Tehreek-e-Istiqlal

was a new entry in the politics of Punjab.

112

Figure 3.3: LIST OF POLITICAL PARTIES PARTICIPATING IN THE GENERAL ELECTIONS 1990

________________________________________________________________________ 1. Awami National Party 2. Hazara Front 3. Islami Jamhoori Ittehad 4. Jamaat-e-Ahl-e-Sunnat 5. Jamiat-e-Ahl-e-Hadees Pakistan. 6. Jamiiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam (F) 7. National Democratic Party 8. Pakistan Democratic Party 9. Pakistan Muslim League (Qaiyum) 10. Pakistan National Party 11. Progressive Peoples Party Pakistan 12. Punjabi Pakhtoon Ittehad (S. A. Group) 13. Punjabi Pakhtoon Ittehad (Hazar.K.) 14. Awami Tehreek (Palejo Group) 15. Baloch Ittehad Party

16. Balochistan National Movement 17. Haq Parast Group 18. Jamhoori Watan Party 19. Jamiiat-e-Ulema-e-Pakistan (Niazi) 20. Jamiiat-e-Ulema-e-Pakistan(Noorani) 21. Mohajir Punjabi Pathan Ittehad 22. Pakhtoon Khawa Milli Awami Party 23. Pakistan Awami Tehreek 24. Pakistan Mazdur Kissan Party (F) 25. Pakistan Muslim League (Liaqat) 26. Pakistan Saraiki Party 27. Peoples Democratic Alliance

i. Pakistan Muslim League (Q) ii. Pakistan Peoples Party iii. Tehrik-e-Nafaz-e-Fiqa-eJafaria iv. Tehreek-e-Istiqlal

28. Qaumi Inqlabi Party 29. Saraiki Qaumi Ittehad 30. Sindh National Alliance (H. Jatoi) 31. Sindh National Alliance (H.Khuro) 32. Sindh National Front

______________________________________________________________________ SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan, Report of the General Elections 1990, Vol. I.

Other than that there were eighteen parties which were present in the 1988

election but could not properly institutionalise themselves, so were totally absent in the

General Elections 1990.

3.4.1 Party Position in 1990 Elections in Punjab

Results of the elections given in table 3.2 show that the desired results

were achieved by the establishment in the general elections held in October 1990.

113

Table 3.2: PARTY POSITION IN THE GENERAL ELECTION 1990 IN PUNJAB. PROVINCIAL ASSEMBLY OF PUNJAB NO. OF

SEATS

S. #

Name of Party

Candidates Valid votes %age of valid votes

P.P. N.A.

1 IJI 237 7540331 55.13 214 90

2 PDA 231 3994191 29.20 10 14

3 PDP 10 65546 00.48 2 2

4 PAT 103 76163 00.56 -

5 JUP (N) 42 104126 00.76 - 3

6 PML (Q) 13 18957 00.14 -

7 JUI (F) 34 54911 00.40 -

8 PSP 7 2582 00.02 -

9 SQI 2 213 - -

10 JAS 6 2172 00.02 -

11 ANP 3 984 00.01 -

12 PNP 2 1511 00.01 -

13 NDP 1 31 - -

14 JWP 1 127 - -

15 PPI (M. H.

Khan)

4 2845 00.02 -

16 JAH 1 7889 00.06 -

17 PML (Sh.

Liaqat)

1 91 - -

18 PMKP

(Fatehyab)

1 385 - -

19 PPPP 1 859 - -

20 Independents 936 1803896 13.19 14 06

TOTAL 1636 13677810 100.00 240 115

SOURCE: Report of the General Elections, 1990, Vol. 1, Election Commission of Pakistan, Islamabad.

114

Following a similar pattern of the previous table, the table 3.2 is also showing the

contending parties in Punjab, the number of candidates nominated per party, percentage

of valid votes polled by every party, and number of seats secured by them in the

Provincial Assembly of Punjab in addition to the National Assembly of Pakistan from

Punjab. This time also the number of independent candidates was higher as 936 as

compared to a total number of 700 candidates nominated by all the 19 parties present in

the election.

The IJI took lead in nominating 237 members against 240 seats of the Provincial

Assembly of Punjab followed by PDA with 231, PAT with 103, JUP (N) with 42, JUI (F)

with 34, PML (Q) with 13, PDP with10, PSP with 7, JAS with 6, PIP (Mir Hazar Khan)

with 4, ANP with 3, SQI and PDP with 2 each, and JAH, PML (Sh. Liaqat), PMKP

(Fatehyab), PPPP, NDP, and JWP with one candidate each.

This time only three parties could secure seats in the Provincial Assembly and

four parties in the National Assembly seats of Punjab. IJI pocketed big share with 214

seats (89.1%) through 55.13 percent of the total valid votes polled for the Provincial

Assembly. PDA could secure only 10 seats (4.16 %) and PDP 2 seats (0.83 %) with 29.20

and 00.48 percent of the valid votes polled, respectively. No other party could win even a

single seat. Blueprint of the National Assembly seats for Punjab was also not so different

with a large number of 90 seats of IJI (78.26 %) of the total 115 seats. Chase by PDA,

JUP (N), and PDP with 14 (12.17 %), 3 (2.6%), and 2 (1.73 %) seats, in that order. If the

law of average in the national assembly results is applied to the results in the provincial

115

assembly polls, the PDA should have secured around thirty seats instead of only ten. It

seems that after suffering a humiliated defeat, the PDA came out to have acquiescent to

its fate in the provincial assembly polls, held after three days.

Having such a sweeping victory in Punjab the IJI had no challenge at all to form

the government with an overwhelming majority. After forming government, the IJI

elected Ghulam Haider Wyne as the Chief Minister of Punjab and Mian Manzoor Ahmad

Wattoo of IJI was elected unopposed Speaker of the Assembly for the third consecutive

term. Wattoo continued as speaker till April 25, 1993, when he became Chief

Ministerafter the removal of Ghulam Haider Wyne from his office as a result of a no

confidence motion. It was the first ever no confidence motion passed against any Chief

Minister in the history of the Provincial Assembly of Punjab. The office of the Speaker of

the assembly was held by Saeed Ahmad Khan Manais of IJI on May 4, 1993, who

continued in this office till October 19, 1993. Mian Manazir Ali Ranjha of the same party

elected from the constituency PP-29, Sargodha VII, took the office of Deputy Speaker of

the assembly on November 7, 1990. He was replaced by Sahibzada Muhammad Usman

Khan Abbasi on May 5, 1993. Abbasi was elected as an independent candidate from the

constituency number PP-29, Bahawalpur II, however he joined the IJI government later

on. The office of the Leader of the Opposition was run by Rana Ikram Rabbani of PPP

from November 8, 1990 till the dissolution of the assembly on June 28, 1993. A

comfortable position of the IJI led to the general belief that at last political stability had

been restored in the province and this party would remain saddled in power till

completion of the normal term of the assembly as envisaged under the Constitution. The

116

PDA, however did not accept the results and repeatedly alleged at the instance of the

President Ishaq Khan and that the IJI, therefore had no right to rule. Still it decided to sit

in the opposition to fight.

A total number of 936 independent candidates could get only 13.19 percent of the

overall valid votes with 14 seats in the Provincial Assembly of Punjab and only 6 (5.21

%) of the National Assembly seats in Punjab. The table also shows that 16 parties with no

seat nominated 222 but could secure, in aggregate, only 2 percent of the total votes

polled. Out of these ANP, JAH, JAS, JUI (F), NDP, PDP, PML (Q), PNP, and PPI were

also present in the 1988 election, when only JUI (F) and PDP could secure 1 and 2 seats

respectively. It clearly shows that the people don’t vote for the smaller, regional or the

religious parties.

3.5 POLITICAL PARTIES IN POLITICS 1993

In the General election a large number of 49 parties participated in the election. Out of

these there were only four parties which participated in all the three consecutive elections

with the same nomenclature in their individual capacity, without becoming a part of any

alliance. These four parties include Awami National Party, Hazara Front, Pakistan

Muslim League (Qaiyum Group), and Pakistan National Party.

117

Figure 3.4: LIST OF POLITICAL PARTIES PARTICIPATING IN THE GENERAL ELECTIONS 1993

________________________________________________________________________ 1. Awami Falahi Tehreek Pakistan 2. Awami National Party 3. Awami Tehrik-e-Inqilab Pakistan 4. Baluch Ittehad Party 5. Baluchistan National

Movement (M) 6. Dehaat Ittehad Party 7. Ghareeb Ittehad Party 8. Gharib Awam Party 9. Gujrati Qaumi Movement 10. Haq Parast Group 11. Haqiqi Group 12. Hazara Front 13. Hazara Qaumi Mahaz 14. Islam Public Party 15. Islami Jamhoori Mahaz 16. Jamhoori Wattan Party 17. jinnah Muslim League 18. Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam(Ainee G.) 19. Mazdoor Kissan Party(A. B.) 20. Mazdoor Kissan Party(Fatehyab) 21. Mazdoor Kissan Party(Ishaq ) 22. Mutahidda Deeni Mahaz

23. National Democrative Alliance 24. National muslim League(M) 25. National Peoples Party(Workers) 26. Pakhtoon Khwa Milli Awami

Party 27. Pakistan Islamia Front 28. Pakistan Ittehad Tehreek 29. Pakistan Khwa Qaumi Party 30. Pakistan Labour Party 31. Pakistan Mili ittehad 32. Pakistan Muslim League (N) 33. Pakistan Muslim League(J) 34. Pakistan Muslim League(Q) 35. Pakistan Muslim Lerague(F) 36. Pakistan National League 37. Pakistan National Party 38. Pakistan Peoples Party 39. Pakistan Peoples Partyt(Hayee) 40. Pakistan Saraiki Party 41. Pakistan Tehreek-i-Inqilab 42. Punjab National Party 43. Qaumi Islami Party 44. Shaheed bhutto Committee 45. Social Justice Front 46. Tameer-e-Pakistan Party 47. Tehreek Inqilab Islami 48. Tehreek-e-Inqilab 49. Wattan Party

________________________________________________________________________ SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan Report of the General Elections 1993, Vol. I.

There were 17 other parties which contested two out of these three elections.

These parties include BIP, BNM, HPG, IJI, JWP, JUI (F), NDP, NML(Mohasiba Group),

NPP(Workers Group), PKMAP, PDP, PPP, PSP, PPPP, PMKP(Fatehyab Group), and

WP. All the rest of parties either contested only one election or changed their name or

were split in to different groups, which show a sort of inconsistency in the process of

institutionalisation in the structure and functioning of the parties. This in turn reflects a

general level of inconsistency in the political culture of the society.

118

3.5.1 Party Position in 1993 Elections in Punjab

The table 3.3 is showing party position in the General Elections for the Provincial

Assembly of Punjab and the National Assembly seats for Punjab of the similar pattern of

the preceding tables. It shows that quite like the previous elections this time also a large

number of 868 independent candidates were there in the field against 765 party

candidates. PML (N) emerged as a single major party which took lead in nominating

highest number of 232 candidates against 240 seats of the Provincial Assembly of Punjab

followed by PPP with 198, PIF with 139, MDM with 50, and IJM with 46 candidates,

respectively. In other parties PML (J), NDA, ANP, NPP, and JWP nominated 37, 12, 3,

2, and 1 candidate in the subsequent order. The voter turn out, however was short (13.55

%) in favour of the independent candidates.

Rest of the 86.45 percent of the votes were cast in favour of the party

candidates, showing a general support for the party candidates, but still such a big vote of

the independent candidates shows an influence of individuals on the politics of Punjab.

Concerning party positions, this time six parties were able to get their share in the

Provincial Assembly of Punjab in addition to the five parties in the National Assembly

representing Punjab.

119

Table 3.3: PARTY POSITION IN THE GENERAL ELECTION 1993 IN PUNJAB.

PROVINCIAL ASSEMBLY OF PUNJAB SEATS

S.

#

Name of Party Candidates Valid votes %age of valid

votes

P.P. N.A.

1. PML (N) 232 5910804 40.86 106 55

2. PPP 198 5018154 34.69 94 47

3. PML (J) 37 850269 5.88 18 06

4. NDA 12 67583 0.47 2 01

5. PIF 139 350837 2.43 2

6. MDM 50 163572 1.13 1 01

7. ANP 3 115 0.00 -

8. IJM 46 123874 0.85 -

9. JWP 1 82 0.00 -

10. NPP 2 137 0.00 -

11. Other Small Parties 45 20614 0.14 -

12. Independents 868 1959431 13.55 17 05

TOTAL 1633 14465473 100.00 240 115

SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan, Report of the General Elections, 1993, Vol. 1, Islamabad.

However, 83.33 percent (106+94=200) of the total 240 seats of the

Provincial Assembly of Punjab were won mainly by the two parties i.e. PML (N) and

PPP, respectively. Similarly 88.69 percent (55+47=102) of the total 115 seats of National

Assembly for Punjab were won by these very two parties. This demonstrates that a bi-

party system was emerging as a positive sign in the political development in Punjab.

Another interesting feature extracted from the data in this table is that the proportion of

the seats is higher when compared to the proportion of the votes polled in favour of most

120

of the parties as compared to the independent candidates and the smaller parties. Like,

PML (N) won 44.16 percent seats (106) with 40.86 percent votes, PPP won 39.16 percent

seats (94) with 34.69 percent votes, PML (J) won 7.5 percent seats (18) with 5.88 percent

votes and NDA won 0.83 percent seats (2) with 0.47 votes, where as independent

candidates won only 0.41 percent seats with 1.13 percent votes. PIF and MDM were also

looser in this regard by winning 0.83 percent seats (2) with 2,43 percent votes and 0.41

percent seats (1) with 1,13 percent of votes, subsequently. It also depicts a trend of a

developed behaviour as the people opt to cast vote not only for parties rather they like to

vote for the major parties instead of the independent candidates or the unstable parties.

Owing to these election results, the episode of the formation of government was

little complex and more astonishing. As in spite of being a majority party the PML (N)

could not get elect its Chief Minister. Rather the third majority party PML (J) availed the

opportunity to manoeuvre the situation in its favour by making a deal with the second

majority party i.e. PPP. With its 6 seats in the National Assembly and 18 in the Provincial

Assembly of Punjab, PML (J) formed a coalition with the PPP at both the levels.

Consequently, Mian Manzoor Ahmad Wattoo of PML (J) was elected Chief Minister

with 131 votes against 105 polled by Mian Shahbaz Sharif of PML (N), who stood

Leader of Opposition in this assembly. PPP entered into this coalition to keep the PML

(N) out of power at any cost. That is why it managed to get one of its founder members

Muhammad Hanif Ramey to elect for office of Speaker of the assembly. The office of

Deputy Speaker however, was occupied by Mian Manzoor Ahmad Mohal of PML (J).

121

This uneasy coalition however continued for nearly two years by which time PPP

members had become fed up of Wattoo arrogant and autocratic style of governance.

Ultimately, Benazir Bhuttoo gave in and preparations were made to remove Wattoo. Raja

Saroop Khan the Governor of Punjab issued a report against Wattoo. Basing upon this

report, President of Pakistan Farooq Ahmad Khan Leghari issued a Proclamation on

September 5 1995, under Article 234 of the Constitution of 1973, directing the Governor

to acquire the functioning of the Provincial Government of Punjab. (PLD, 1997: 38)

After taking control of the government on behalf of the President, he called upon

Wattoo to get vote of confidence from the assembly in a hurriedly summoned session on

12 September 1995. Wattoo did not attend the session so was removed from the office of

chief minister ship. Benazir’s desire was still not fulfilled to get someone from her party

elected of the vacated office and had to take support of the same party i.e. PML (J) to

keep PML (N) out of power. This time, however she opted for a weak and pliable person

Sardar Muhammad Arif Nakai of the same PML (J) as Chief Minister. After getting

elected unopposed as Chief Minister with152 votes Nakai won a vote of confidence

with148 votes to his credit on September 14, 1995.

On the other side, Wattoo challenged the Proclamation of Emergency and his

removal from office before the Lahore High Court. A full bench of the Court vide its

judgment dated 3 November, declared both the acts of Proclamation of Emergency and of

the election of a new Chief Minister as unlawful and without constitutional authority.

Watto was thus restored to his office of the Chief Minister as on September 5, 1995, with

an advice not to advise the Governor to dissolve the assembly before getting a vote of

122

confidence with in not more than ten days. (Ibid: 38) The same day, however, eighty five

members of the Provincial Assembly moved a vote of no-confidence against him.

This polarisation ultimately, culminated into the dissolution of the central

government of PPP on 5 November 1996. Wattoo appealed before the Supreme Court of

Pakistan for an extension in the period of getting a vote of confidence, which the apex

Court duly extended from ten to thirteen days. Eventually, he was required to attain a

vote of confidence by 16 November, the same date that was fixed for vote of no-

confidence. The motion for no-confidence was withdrawn, nevertheless obliging him to

get a vote of confidence. That very day, ninety three members on PML (N) submitted

their resignations from the assembly, leaving no option for Wattoo but to resign from his

office on November 17, 1996. In this way, this assembly could also not complete its

tenure of five years and was dissolved by the Governor on the same day. The Assembly

held its last session from 10 November 1996 to 16 November 1996. In its active life of 3

years, 01 month and 9 days the assembly met for 174 sittings over 40 sessions and passed

25 Acts.

3.6 POLITICAL PARTIES IN POLITICS 1997

The figure 3.5 shows that the number of political parties participating in the General

Elections1997 was as high as 64 in total─ the highest counting in all the four subsequent

elections. Out of these sixty four parties there were thirty four parties participating in any

of these elections for the first time. Eighteen were the parties participating in these

123

Figure 3.5: LIST OF POLITICAL PARTIES PARTICIPATING IN THE GENERAL ELECTIONS 1997 ________________________________________________________________________

1. Awami Inqilabi Mahaz Pakistan

2. Awami Ittehad

3. Awami National Party

4. Awami Qiadat Party

5. Awami Tehreek

6. Baluchistan National Movement

7. Baluchistan National Partyt

8. Deehat Ittehad Party

9. Haq Parast Group

10. Hazara Qaumi Mahaz

11. Islam Public Party

12. Islami Inqilab Party

13. Islami Siasi Tehreek

14. Jamat-e-Islami Pakistan

15. Jamhoori Wattan Party

16. Jamiat Mashaikh Pakistan (Pir F. Haq)

17. Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam ( Sami-ul-

Haq)

18. Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F)

19. Jamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan

20. Jamot Qaumi Movement

21. Jinnah Muslim League

22. Kakar Jamhoori Party Pakistan

23. Khaksar Tehreek

24. MarkaziJamiat Ahl-e-Hadis

Pakistan

25. Mazdoor Kissan Party (Kamil

Bangash)

26. Mazdoor Kissan Party (Major Ishaq)

27. Mohajir Qaumi Movement ( Haqiqi)

28. Muslim Ittehad Pakistan

29. Muslim Welfare Movement

30. Mutahidda Deeni Mahaz

31. National Labour Party

32. National Peoples Party

33. Musavi Haqooq-e-Insani Tehreek

International

34. National Peoples Party (W G)

35. Pakhtoon Khwa Milli Awami Party

36. Pakistan Awami Party

37. Pakistan Democratic Party

38. Pakistan Freedom Party

39. Pakistan Ittehad Tehreek

40. Pakistan Khwa Qaumi Party

41. Pakistan Milli Ittehad

42. Pakistan Muslim League (Funct.)

43. Pakistan Muslim League (J) Chatta

44. Pakistan Muslim League (N)

45. Pakistan Muslim League(Junejo G.)

46. Pakistan Muslim League(Qayum G.)

47. Pakistan Nijat Party

48. Pakistan Peoples Party

49. Pakistan Peoples Party (SB)

50. Pakistan Peoples Party (Z A Bhutto)

51. Pakistan Qaumi League

52. Pakistan Saraiki League

53. Pakistan Tehreek-i-Inqilab

54. Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf

55. Punjabi Qaumi Tehreek

56. Saraiki National Party

57. Sindh Ittehad

58. Tehreek-e-Inqilab

59. Tehreek-e-Islam Pakistan

60. Tehreek-e-Istiqlal

61. Tehreek-e-Jafaria Pakistan

62. United National Alliance

63. Wattan Party

________________________________________________________________________ SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan, Report of the General Elections, 1993, Vol. 1,

Islamabad.

124

elections for the second time, nine parties for the third time and only two were the parties

which participated in all of the four elections under study.

An aggregate review of the phenomenon of participation of political parties in

elections shows that in total 110 different political parties and alliances participated in the

electoral politics during the period under study.

A large number of 76 parties could participate only in one of these elections in

their individual capacity. Twenty seven parties participated in any of the two elections.

Eleven parties participated in three elections. Only two parties which participated in all

the four elections at the national level were the National Awami Party and the Pakistan

Muslim League (Qaiyum Group). In the case of Punjab there was only one party i.e.

Pakistan Muslim League (Qaiyum Group) which participated in all the four elections in

Punjab.

All the rest of parties had to make alliances to ensure their survival or were split

into different groups or had changed their names. Astonishingly, none of these two

parties could secure even a single seat whether in the Provincial Assembly elections or in

the National Assembly elections in Punjab. It shows that though these parties were

consistent in contesting elections, but were unable to organise them at the societal level

and to muster a vote bank for themselves.

125

\3.6.1 Party Position in 1997 Elections in Punjab

Focussing on the General Elections 1997, the table 3.4 is showing party position in these

elections in Punjab. It shows that a total number of 1517 candidates were contesting for

the 240 seats of the Provincial Assembly of Punjab. Still the number of party candidates

was less than the independents, as 587 candidates had nomination of any party whereas

926 candidates were contesting as independent candidates. The voter turn out however

was higher in favour of the party candidates with 79.03 percent as compared to the 20.97

percent votes of the independent candidates. Having 20.97 percent votes they won 21

seats (8.75 %) in the Provincial Assembly of Punjab. 54.19 percent votes with 212 seats

(88.33 %) were won by a single party i.e. PML (N), this time. This resulted in one party

rule with absolute majority in the province, and ended any chance for the independent

candidates to influence the government and the political system in their own personal

interests. Otherwise they had always been a destabilizing and negative factor in the

political development of the province.

The Pakistan Peoples Party nominated 191 candidates, pocketed 20.28 percent

votes but won only 3 seats in the Provincial Assembly of Punjab and no seat in the

National Assembly from Punjab. PML (J) nominated 28 candidates got 2.20 percent

votes and won 2 seats in the Provincial Assembly and none in the National Assembly.

126

Table 3.4: PARTY POSITION IN THE GENERAL ELECTION 1997 IN PUNJAB.

PROVINCIAL ASSEMBLY OF PUNJAB NO. OF

SEATS

S.

#

Name of Party Can

dida

tes

Valid votes %age of

valid

votes

P.P. N.A.

1 PPP 191 2484026 20.28 3

2 PML (J) 28 270275 2.20 2

3 PML (N) 235 6638907 54.19 212 109

4 PDP 10 50026 0.41 1

5 MIP 04 27378 0.22 1

6 PTI 123 211504 1.73 -

7 Independents 926 2568089 20.97 21 06

TOTAL 1517 12250205 100.00 240 115

SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan, Report of the General Elections, 1993, Vol. 1, Islamabad.

The PDP and MIP nominated 10 and 04 candidates, got 0.41 and 0.22 percent of

votes respectively and could won one seat each. PTI’s 123 candidates got 1.73 percent of

the votes but could get no seat either in the Provincial Assembly or the National

Assembly.

These results show that the PML (N) had completely swept the elections and had

no opposition left worth name left in the province. It was expected that the office the

Chief Minister will be offered to Chaudhary Pervaiz Elahi of PML (N) as per the promise

made by Nawaz Sharif after the reinstatement of his government by the Supreme Court of

Pakistan in 1993. After having such an overwhelming majority Nawaz felt no challenge

from any group inside the party and decided to nominate his own brother Shahbaz Sharif

127

for that office. Actually, he did not want to repeat another bitter experience like that of

Wattoo in 1993. In compensation, however he offered the post of Speaker of the

Provincial Assembly of Punjab to Pervaiz Elahi. The Chaudharis of Gujrat had to accept

the same though half heartedly. They nevertheless spared no time to show their

resentment in 1999, when Nawaz government was toppled by General Pervaiz Musharraf

in a coup. Sardar Hassan Akhtar Mokal from the same party i.e. PML (N) was elected to

the office of Deputy Speaker of the assembly. Saeed Ahmad Khan Manais of PML (J)

held portfolio of the Leader of Opposition. PPP was totally out of the political game

having no influence in the assembly. This time there was no shifting or reshuffle in any

of the office of the assembly and all the office holders remained in their office till topple

of the government. The assembly constituted under these elections summoned its first

meeting on February 18, 1997. The assembly had held its last session from August 10,

1999 to August 20, 1999. Conducting 130 sittings over 16 sessions, the assembly availed

an active life of two years, seven months and twenty three days, whereby it passed thirty

nine Acts.

It was on October 12, 1999 that the army took control of the country. The

assemblies were placed under suspension and the Constitution was held abeyance

through the proclamation of Emergency. General Pervaiz Musharaf the then Chief of

Army Staff and Joint Chief of Staff Committee assumed the office of Chief Executive of

the country, on the same day. The assemblies were kept under suspension till June 20,

2001, when they ultimately were dissolved (Gazette of Pakistan, extraordinary, June

2001:775-76).

128

A brief review of these eleven years of the electoral politics of Punjab shows that

four elections were held during this whole period. Four different governments were found

out of these elections. The IJI won majority in the first two elections of 1988 and 1990. In

1988 it formed the Provincial Government of Punjab with the help of 32 independent

candidates, who had a considerable influence on both the government as well as the

ruling party. In 1990 however, the IJI exclusively swept the polls in Punjab with 211 out

of 240 seats and formed the government with an overwhelming majority. This excessive

participation in favour of the IJI led it towards instability which ultimately culminated

into its bereavement. One of its own segments i.e. the PML (J) parted its ways from IJI

and stood against its leader Nawaz Sharif in the 1993 election. The PML (J) exploited the

situation in its good favours this time and won the post of Chief Minister in spite of

having only 18 seats in the assembly. Even these 18 seats in the Provincial Assembly

along with 6 other seats in the National Assembly exceeded than the level of

institutionalisation of the PML (J), so proved hazardous for it.

Other than this excessive participation in favour of the PML (J), posts of the Chief

Minister and of the Deputy Speaker of the Provincial Assembly of Punjab proved

perilous for it and led it towards instability. That is why it lost its vote bank and could

secure only two seats in the Provincial Assembly of Punjab and none in the National

Assembly in the General Elections 1997. In these elections PML (N), an offspring of the

previous IJI, won a land slide victory with 212 seats and formed its government in the

province. This land slide victory with an excessive participation accelerated the demise of

129

PML (N). With a lesser level of institutionalisation this party could not function maturely

enough and had to face such a big loss at the hands of military establishment that it could

not overcome till now. A critical evaluation of the functioning of the subsequent

provincial governments of Punjab shows that in aggregate the assembly held 516 sittings

over 82 sessions and passed a total number of 110 Acts. The performance of the1990 and

of the 1997 assemblies however was comparatively better. The reason being that during

both these terms there was a single party government with a consuming majority. Both

the other assemblies were dependent upon the independent candidates and the ally parties

respectively, which did let any party to exert itself and to function smoothly.

130

Chapter 4

POLITICAL PARTIES AND POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT IN PUNJAB 1988-1993

Political parties, being an effective channel of political participation, are the core

institution and an integral part of a political process (LaPalombara and Weiner, 1972:

399-438). Their relevance is even more in the case of Pakistan as the country itself is a

product of a political party and of an excessive participation of the Muslims of India in

the 1946 elections. (Huntington, 1964: 250-55) On the other side, (Elsersweld (1964: 5)

argues that a political party can best be described as a “stratarchy ─ that is, the

enlargement of the ruling group of an organisation, its power stratification, the

involvement of large number of people in group decision-making, and thus, the diffusion

and proliferation of control through out the structure”.

Duverger (1978: 62-70) has synthesised the matter by giving the concepts of

‘cadre parties’ and ‘mass parties’. The distinction between cadre and mass parties is not

merely based upon their magnitude or upon the number of their members, but the

difference involved is that of the structure rather than of the size. The mass party modus

operandi replaces the capitalist investments of electioneering by democratic mass

financing of its members. It spreads the burden of party budget and responsibilities over

the largest possible number of members, each of whom contributes as per his capacity. It

refrains from concentrating to a few big private donors, bankers, industrialists, merchants

131

or land lords for funds to meet expenses, which actually makes the candidates and the

elected office holders dependent upon them. By virtue of its structural characteristic,

mass party appeals to the public to pay for election campaign to be free from capitalist

pressure. It mainly depends upon the wide-ranging public which receives a political

education through political participation and learns how to intervene in the life of the

state. The cadre party on the other side corresponds to a different conception. It

corresponds to the grouping of nobilities for the preparatory sponsorship of election

campaign and marinating contacts with the candidates. In the first place, the influential

persons whose name prestige or connections can provide a backing for the candidate are

sorted out. In the second place the party focuses upon the experts, who know the

technicalities to handle the electors and to organise an effective campaign. In the last

place a cadre party focuses on the financiers, who can provide the ligament sources for

contest. In short what the mass party secures by numbers, the cadre party achieves by

selection.

This distinction though clear in theory, is not always easy to make in practice. A

basic difference between cadre and mass parties indeed, corresponds to difference in

social and political subcultures. Initially, it coincided with the replacement of a limited

franchise by universal suffrage. The electoral systems with the franchise restricted with

property or any other qualification naturally produced the cadre parties. There, of course,

could be no question of enrolling the masses in to parties at a time when they had no

political influence (Ibid: 64-65).

132

Applying this criterion on the political development of Punjab or even of the

whole Pakistan for that matter, no General Elections could be held here on the basis of

universal adult franchise till 1970. That is why for the most part political activity had

been confined to the very small group of active politicians that too based on the urban

areas. The common man especially in rural areas had been unaware of or indifferent to

the exercises that were taking place at the provincial capital. The masses had not become

accustomed to regarding themselves as voters (Callard, 1957: 50-52).

It shows that the political parties present in the political process were functioning

more like the cadre parties. This brief phase of party politics was also over with the

imposition of Martial Law in 1958. All political parties were banned until the

introduction of the Political Parties Act of 1962, under the Constitution of 1962. The

indirect elections of 1965 were held on party basis, but all the major parties were

marginalised by the State machinery. Combined Opposition Parties (COP) including the

Council Muslim League led by Khawaja Nazimuddin, and Mian Mumtaz Khan Daultana,

the Awami League led by Maulana Bhashani, another faction of the Awami League led

by Wali Khan, the Nizam-i-Islam Party led by Chaudhary Muhammad Ali and the Jamat-

i-Islami led by Maulana Maudoodi, rejected the election results as being engineered in

their opinion. The Martial Law of 1979 banned the political parties again. Since then no

elections could be held on party basis prior to the General Elections 1988. Then onwards,

all the four consecutive elections were held on party basis. These very elections are being

observed by the present study with special reference to the working of political parties in

Punjab.

133

The studies produced on political parties are not only little in number but

also in quality, with the exception of very few. The two most important studies in this

regard are of K. K. Aziz (1976) and of Rafiq Afzal (1998). The study of Aziz is focussing

the period from 1947 to 1958. Sketching a comprehensive background of the political and

constitutional development in the country, he has categorised parties into major, minor,

regional and religious political parties. Further discussing the anatomy of political parties

he has traced the prospects for democracy in the consistent functioning of the parties and

their respective leadership. Afzal on the other side has produced a voluminous work on

the political parties in Pakistan written in three volumes covering the periods from 1947-

58, 1958-69, and 1969-71, respectively. This is basically a historical analysis of the

political parties and their working through the different periods of time. The work

presents an encyclopaedic perspective with an investigation into the process of make and

break of the political parties. Another work is edited by A. B. S. Jafri (1996). This also is

not a research book but gives good generalist description of some of the political parties

in Pakistan. Other books are produced in Urdu. First of all Safdar Mahmood (1988)

enlisted various parties working in Pakistan during the period from 1947-1977. Mahmood

has discussed the history of various political parties, their role in politics at different

stages, their leadership and their ideological commitments along with the masses they

influenced. Then Ahmad (1993) has given a detailed description of the political alliances

made during the period from 1947 up to 1992. With a generalist explanation the writer

has presented the background, formation and outcome of different alliances made to form

and to remove different governments in Pakistan. Finally, Ashar, Masood (2004) has

134

Table 4.1: TOTAL POLITICAL PARTIES IN THE P.A. ELECTIONS IN PUNJAB.

S. #

1988 1990 1993 1997

1. PML(MQ) ANP PML(J) KT 2. ANP(A) IJI GAP AQP 3. IJI JAH IJM BNP 4. JAHP JAS JAS HPG 5. JASP JUI(F) JMP IST 6. JUI(D) JUP(N) JWP JI 7. JUI(F) JWP MDM JML 8. NDP NDP MKP(I) JUI 9. NPP(K) PAT NDA JUI (F) 10. PAI PDA NPP JUI(S) 11. PDP PDP NPP(W) JUP 12. PIP PMKP(FY) PIF JUP(N) 13. PMKP PML(Q) PML(F) JWP 14. ANP PNP ANP AI 15. PMLQ PPI(MKH) PML(N) MDM 16. PNDA Pr.PP PPP MHITI 17. PNP PSP PSP MIP 18. PPP SQI SBC MJAHP 19. PQLP SJF MWM 20. PQMA TI NLP 21. TNFJ NPP 22. NPP(WG) 23. PAP 24. PDP 25. PMI 26. PML(J) 27. PML(J)Chata 28. PML(N) 29. PML(Q) 30. PNP 31. PP(SB) 32. PPP 33. PPP(ZAB) 34. PQT 35. PSL 36. PT Inqlab 37. PTI 38. SI 39. SNP 40. SPN 41. TI 42. UNA 43. WP

SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan, Reports on the General Elections 1988, 1990, 1993, and 1997.

135

produced an extensive work on the major political parties in Pakistan. This book is

basically an updated edition of the book earlier edited by Ashar, Masood and Muhammad

Usman (1990) jointly. This book mainly focuses the line of action, purpose of creation,

manifestoes of different political parties along with their election manifesto. It presents

the similarities and differences between the policies of various political parties with a

generalist perspective. No book is therefore covering the period under study properly.

To start with nothing significant in hand the present researcher has first of all

enlisted all the political parties which had fielded their candidates for the Provincial

Assembly seats in Punjab in all the four elections. The figure 4.1 shows that a total

number of 21 political parties had nominated their candidates for the Provincial

Assembly seats in Punjab in the General Elections 1988, followed by 18, 20 and 43

number of parties participating in the 1990, 1993 and 1997 elections, respectively. It

reflects a multi party culture in the province which is obviously attached with the

Proportional Representational (PR) system of elections. A large number of these parties

were merely present in the elections having secured no seat at all. In the 1988 only six

parties were able to secure seats (See Table 4.2) all the rest fifteen parties could secure no

seat in the Provincial Assembly of Punjab.In the 1990 elections only three parties could

secure seats leaving all the other fifteen parties with no seat. In the 1993 elections again

six parties were able to make their share in the assembly, but these were the same parties

having seats in the 1988 elections. All the remaining fourteen parties were left with no

seat. A large number of 43 parties participated in the 1997 elections but only six parties

136

were able to have their scope in the assembly against the thirty seven drawn-out parties

with no seat.

Table 4.2: PARTIES HAVING SEATS IN THE PROVINCIAL ASSEMBLY OF

PUNJAB IN 1988, 1990, 1993 AND 1997 ELECTIONS.

S.# PARTY NAME ELECTIONS

1988 1990 1993 1997

1. Islami Jamhuri Ittehad 108 214

2. Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F) 1

3. Mutahida Deeni Mahaz (MDM) 1

4. Muslim Ittehad Pakistan (MIP) 1

5. National Democratic Alliance (NDA) 2

6. National Peoples Party (NPP) (Khar Group) 1

7. Pakistan Awami Ittehad (PAI) 2

8. Pakistan Democratic Alliance (PDA) 10

9. Pakistan Democratic Party (PDP) 2 2 1

10. Pakistan Islamic Front (PIF) 2

11. Pakistan Muslim League (PML) (Junejo Group) 18 2

12. Pakistan Muslim League (PML) (Nawaz Group) 106 212

13. Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) 97 94 3

SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan, Reports on the General Elections 1988, 1990, 1993, and 1997.

137

A cumulative picture of the performance of different parties in the elections of

Punjab shows that at the maximum six parties had their share in the assembly in any one

election. However, in aggregate all the parties having seats in the elections are counted

thirteen in number. All these parties are selected by the researcher to evaluate their

political strategy along with their performance.

Only the above listed political parties in the table 4.2 will be discussed in this

research at length, because the researcher thinks that only these were the parties having

any impact on the politics of Punjab.

4.1 ISLAMI JAMHURI ITTEHAD (IJI)

The Islami Jamhoori Alliance (IJI) owes its origin to the Islamic Democratic Alliance

(IDA). The IDA was formed in a meeting held at the residence of a leader of the NPP Dr.

Sarfraz Mir in Islamabad on 6 October 1988. A rightist alliance was formed there with a

combination of eight parties named the PML (Fida), the NPP (Jatoi), the JUI

(Darkhawasti Group), the MJAH (Lakhnavi Group), the JMP, the HJ, the NMG and the

Azad Group. (Dawn, 10 October1988) Maulana Sami-ul-Haq the convenor of the alliance

announced that the Jamat-e-Islami, which had participated in the first session of this

meeting held a week earlier, also had a general agreement with the alliance on majority of

the issues so would join it very soon. (Ibid) Three leaders of the Jamat-e-Islami Professor

Ghafoor Ahmad, Professor Khursheed Ahmad and Choudhary Rahmat Ali were present

in the first session of the meeting. They had presented five points including: to ensure the

138

holding of November 16 elections; acquittal of the workers of the Islami Jamiat Tulaba;

withdrawal of cases against them; and reinstatement of the activists of Jamat-e-Islami

from different organisations. (Jafri, 1996:28-30) With the apprehension that the alliance

was not serious to hold the elections the Jamat did not participate in the second meeting.

The main leaders to attend this meeting were Fazl-e-Haq (President NWFP Muslim

League), Akhtar Ali Qazi (President Sind Muslim League), Sardar Zafarullah Jamali

(Chief Minister Balochistan), Muhammad Haroon (Caretaker Federal Minister for

Defence), Nasim Ahmad Aheer (Caretaker Interior Minister), Mir Afzal Khan (Caretaker

Minister for Production), Ghulam Mustafa Jatoi, Zia Abbas, Janif Khan and S. M. Zafar

(NPP), Agha Murtaza Poya (Hizb-e-Jihad), Qamar-un-Nisa Qamar (Nizam-e-Mustafa

Group), Senator Maulana Sami-ul-Haq (JUI Darkhawasti Group), Fakhar Imam and

Javed Hashmi (Independent Group), and Fida Muhammad Khan (PML Fida). (Dawn, 11

October, 1988) After this meeting however the Jamat-e-Islami announced to join the

alliance of IDA on 10 October 1988.

On 12 October office bearers of the alliance were announced as Ghulam Mustafa

Jatoi stood the president and Professor Ghafoor Ahmad of the Jamat-e-Islami was

nominated the secretary general of the alliance. (Ibid, 13 October, 1988) This

permutation of the rightist parties was generally considered an anti-PPP alliance to facade

the threat posed both by the MRD as well as the PPP in the General Elections 1988.

(Herald, Election Special 1988) Main party in this alliance ─ the Muslim League was

split into two factions PML (Fida) and PML (Junejo). The PML (J) was part of another

alliance known as the Pakistan Peoples’ Alliance (PPA). It was being apprehended that

139

this split will go in the benefit of the PPP causing a big loss to the rightist wing. Owing to

these threats the leaders of both the factions joined hands together to unite under the

leadership of Muhammad Khan Junejo on 14 October 1988. Mian Muhammad Nawaz

Sharif was placed as provincial chief of the party in Punjab. In spite of being a provincial

chief of the PML Nawaz had managed to keep his party head Muhammad Khan Junejo at

a safe distance from the party affairs. He had hardly ever taken Junejo in to confidence to

take over the reins of the party. (Ahmad, 1993: 135-36)

Later on the alliance was renamed as the Islami Jamhoori Ittehad (IJI) on 19

October 1988. Nawaz Sharif having a dominating position in his party replaced Ghulam

Mustafa Jatoi as president of the IJI secretary general of the alliance remained the same

person Professor Ghafoor Ahmad. This nine party alliance seemed more like a replica of

the PNA of 1977 as it used the same flag of the PNA in green colour with nine stars on it.

(Younas, 1993: 204-5) Each star in the flag was representing one party. One

distinguishing feature of this alliance was that all the previous alliances in Pakistan were

formed by the opposition parties against the ruling party but quite contrarily this alliance

was formed by the ruling parties against the opposition party i.e. the Pakistan Peoples

Party.

As far as election manifesto of the IJI for the elections of 1988 is concerned it had

to contend itself with the seven point declaration made by Maulana Sami-ul-Haq from the

platform of the IDA on October 7 (Ashar, 2004: 636-647). The seven point declaration

advocated the supremacy of the Islamic law; the provision of equal opportunities for all

sections of the society; inexpensive and non-discriminatory justice for all safeguarding

140

women’s rights; full support to the Afghan Jihad; promotion of nuclear technology for

peaceful and developmental purposes; support to the cause of Kashmir and Palestine;

participation in the non aligned movement and enhancing cooperation with the third

world countries.

The IJI soon confronted with sharp differences among its component parties on

the interpretation of these seven points. For instance, the Afghan issue was the main basis

of the alliance to the IJI whereas the Muslim League faction under the influence of

Muhammad Khan Junejo had a completely different position. While the Jamat-e-Islami

had strongly opposed the Geneva Accord, Junejo’s supporters on the other side believed

that the signing of agreement was his big achievement. Similarly, the alliance partners

did not see eye to eye on the issue of Islamisation. Other then these ideological

differences, the component parties of the IJI differed in their political perspectives too.

Like Muhammad Khan Junejo who was heading the PML, a major component of the IJI

was of the view that it was the PML which mattered and not the IJI. (Herald, Op. Cit.)

The Jamat-e-Islami had also considered for more than one time whether or not to remain

with the alliance, though at the final stage it had always decided to stay with it (Jafri,

1996: 26). Nawaz Sharif on the other side considered himself to be the main force of the

alliance. That is why he started down all the efforts of Muhammad Khan Junejo to bring

the PML to a dominating position in the alliance. He even did not allow the secretary

general of the alliance Professor Ghafoor Ahmad to have a say in the IJI matters. He

never allowed the alliance to establish its secretariat. The secretary general was never

allowed to do any thing more than keeping his name. Notwithstanding all these

discrepancies the IJI was able to remain in the limelight of the country’s political scene

141

on the eve of the 1988 elections in Punjab (Herald, Election Special 1988: 10-11). The

alliance nominated 228 candidates against 240 seats of the Provincial Assembly of

Punjab. (See Table 4.1 for all these details) These candidates pocketed a considerable

number of 4484803 (34.98 %) votes and, securing 108 seats in total, made the IJI a

winning mount in political race of the province. The alliance was able to win 45 seats out

of total 115 seats of the National Assembly in Punjab. It formed provincial government in

Punjab under Nawaz Sharif as Chief Minister of the province. Nawaz Sharif at the same

time got one of his favourites Ghulam Hayder Wyne elected as Leader of the Opposition

in the National Assembly of Pakistan against the wishes of Ghulam Mustafa Jatoi who

himself wanted to take this office. (Ahmad, Op. Cit.) The alliance not only ran the

provincial government very effectively in Punjab rather it also posed a strong opposition

to its main opponent party the PPP at the federal level.

The IJI successfully survived a brawny opposition from the federal government of

the PPP. Instead of disintegration as was widely expected, it managed to secure a certain

level of cooperation from other parties in the National Assembly of 1988 to 1990

(Younas, Op. Cit.). This bipolar opposition to and from the PPP was one of the major

reasons to keep the alliance undamaged. Otherwise it had been plagued with all sorts of

wrangling and incompetence. The alliance had never been able to organise itself as a

proper political body even in the province of Punjab which was its birthplace and

epicentre of its power. Its leadership however remained confined to the province of

Punjab and emerged as a champion of provincial autonomy under the leadership of

Nawaz Sharif. Though some of the differences had cropped up at the time of distribution

of tickets for the General Elections 1990, but were resolved behind the scene. Nawaz

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Sharif, it was said did not want any claimant for the prestigious post of the Prime

Minister to return to the National Assembly in these elections (Weiss and Gillani, 2001:

124-5).

In the General Elections 1990 the IJI was also having full cooperation of the

Combined Opposition parties (COP). The alliance also won the support of some other

regional, political and religious parties like the MQM in Sind, JWP in Baluchistan, ANP

in NWFP and Anjman Sipah-e-Sahaba in Punjab. With an inclusion of these forces the

IJI emerged as a major political force in the country in general and in Punjab in

particular.

As for as election manifest of the IJI for these elections is concerned, it was

announced only eleven days prior to the general elections on 13 October 1990. This

manifesto was some what similar to that of the 1988 elections manifesto. However the

changes incorporated into it included: reconstruction of judicial system according to the

Islamic principles; finalizing the criminal cases within forty days and the civil cases with

in one year; to increase the pace of economic development headed for doubling the

national income in the running decade; to expand the availability of basic necessities for

the rapid rural development; to provide the basic facilities of road net work from fields to

the markets along with the provision of electricity, education and health facilities to the

remote rural vicinity; privatisation of large scale industry and financial institutions after

giving due protection to their workers; to hand over the distribution of gas and electricity

to the private sector; restructuring and accountability of the industrial and trade

organisations of the public sector; creation of one million new jobs within next five years;

to increase the minimum salary level up to three thousand rupees per month; construction

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of the Indus Highway with in next five years; to focus on the primary education in the

direction of attaining a level of hundred percent literacy with in next ten years; a

particular economic and educational planning to ensure the availability of jobs for all the

literate youth; to scot-free the National Press Trust (NPT) and the Associated Press of

Pakistan (APP) from the official control; to transform the Radio and Television

Corporations into autonomous bodies; to finish the restrictions on the import and

distribution of paper for the newspapers; to make the defence capability of the state as

indefeasible; to declare the military training necessary for all the healthy men from the

age 18 to 45 years; to support the establishment of an independent, sovereign and stable

Islamic government in Afghanistan; to support the resolution of the Kashmir issue

according to the resolutions of the United Nations. (Younas, 1993: 273-274) The IJI also

maintained its commitment to establish the supremacy of the Quran and Sunnah. It was

also noted in the aims and objectives of the alliance that all efforts will be made to protect

Pakistan from the problems of moral degradation, economic exploitation, linguistic and

ethnic biases, internal political instability and external threats posed by the international

super powers and the regional big powers. (Herald, Election Special 1990: 19-20)

Establishment of a real democratic system, protection of equal rights for every citizen,

protection of social, economic, political and cultural rights and identity of women,

promotion of national integration, effective implementation of political, administrative

and financial autonomy of the provinces according to the recommendations of the

Constitution, easy excess to justice and formulation of a non-aligned foreign policy of

Pakistan were among the other leading principles of the manifesto (Mahmood, 2000:

128-29).

144

With this manifesto the IJI launched an extensive campaign for the General

Elections 1990. It nominated a large number of 237 candidates against 240 seats of the

Provincial Assembly of Punjab in the 1990 elections. (See table 4.2, for details)

Pocketing the highest ever number of 7540331 votes (55.13 %) the IJI won a high

number of 214 seats i.e. 89.16 percent of the total seats in the Punjab Assembly.

Similarly, it won 90 out of 115 seats of the National Assembly seats reserved for Punjab.

This was the highest number of both the votes as well as the seats ever won in Punjab by

a party or an alliance since the creation of Pakistan. Thus, the IJI was able to form its

government not only in Punjab but also in centre.

Other than the results noted in the above given table the IJI had won two

remarkable achievements since its inception. First, the IJI was able to get the PPP’s

government removed by the then President of Pakistan Ghulam Ishaq Khan in 1990 and

second that it managed to establish its government at the national as well as provincial

levels. Both of these achievements could be made possible through excessive political

participation. This unwarranted participation could however not match with the process

of institutionalisation within the alliance.

Rizvi (2003: 225-232) explains that having no proper internal elections and no

functional secretariat, the alliance gradually lost its credibility as well as the allying

partners. The IJI, first of all, dissolved its partnership with the Hizb-e-Jihad on the basis

that the founder of HJ Agha Murtaza Poya had attended the meetings of the All Parties

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Conference (APC) ─ summoned by Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan in September 1990 ─

and of the PDA.

Table 4.3: IJI’s POSITION IN THE GENERAL ELECTIONS 1988-1997

Year Party Candidates Votes %age Seats

P.A.

Seats

N.A.

1988 IJI 228 4484803 34.98 108 45

1990 IJI 237 7540331 55.13 214 90

1993 - - - - - -

1997 - - - - - -

SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan, Reports on the General Elections 1988, 1990, 1993, and 1997.

Afterwards Ghulam Mustafa Jatoi leader of the NPP was excluded from the

alliance. The Jamat-e-Islami also parted its way from the alliance with the view that the

alliance stood fail in implementing its manifesto in the real sense. Professor Ghafoor

Ahmad also resigned from his office of the Secretary General of the alliance in reaction

to the policies of Nawaz Sharif. Eventually, the JAH also announced to dismember from

the alliance on 13 November 1992. Maulana Sami-ul-Haq of JUI had already detached

his affiliation with the alliance. Only three partners of the alliance ─ PML, JMP and

Azad Group of Fakhar Imam were remained there in the alliance. Even PML (J) had also

announced that it will not contest the next elections from the platform of the IJI. So much

so, the Federal Interior Minister Chaudhary Shujat Hussain a leader of the PML (F) had

also announced that the IJI was no more there, however its dismemberment was not being

announced because the running government had contested elections from its platform.

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According to the election laws if the IJI was denounced its government would also be

dissolved. (Mahmood, 2007: 170-71) Thus Nawaz Sharif tried to run this alliance all

alone. Ultimately, the IJI was received its decisive end with the dissolution of Nawaz

Sharif government in April 1993.

4.2 NATIONAL PEOPLES PARTY (NPP) (KHAR GROUP)

The National Peoples Party (Khar Group) was a dissident group of the National Peoples

Party formed by Ghulam Mustafa Jatoi. Jatoi’s NPP was a dissenter group of the Pakistan

Peoples Party of Zulifqar Ali Bhutto. The founding chairman of the basic NPP, Ghulam

Mustafa Jatoi was initially a front ranking leader of the PPP. After the death of Z. A.

Bhutto, when Bhutto family was in exile to Europe, Jatoi was virtually considered the de

facto party chief. With the return of Benazir Bhutto, the daughter and successor of Z. A.

Bhutto, in 1986, Jatoi claimed that he was deliberately ignored and slighted. These

differences were gradually widened and ultimately resulted into a split of Jatoi from PPP

to form his own party in the name of National Peoples Party. Among other such

nonconformist of the PPP included former Governor of Punjab, Ghulam Mustafa Khar,

and former Chief Minister of Punjab, Hanif Ramey, were also there with Jatoi to Launch

the NPP in Lahore on 30 August 1986.

This unexpected split in the PPP produced a speculation that Jatoi is going to be

made the future Prime Minister of Pakistan which provoked a number of feudals to

assemble with this new born party. This feudal group continued to linger on in the party

ranks with the expectation that the NPP was providing them a shortcut to power. Most of

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its founding members included the dissidents of the PPP who tried their level best to give

the party a strong organizational structure. The second annual council session of the party

was held in Karachi in September 1988 where the party emerged as a well organized

party that was expected to occupy central place in politics. The party underwent a serious

setback when the Punjab chief of the party the then imprisoned Ghulam Mustafa Khar

parted his way from the NPP. Khar announced his disassociation from the NPP in protest

of Jatoi’s entering in an alliance with the PML (Fida group) and accepting cabinet

positions in Sind for some of his party men. After his disassociation from the NPP,

Ghulam Mustafa Khar announced to form his own faction, to be known as NPP (Khar

group) on October 9, 1988. This was announced by his wife Begum Tahmina Khar in a

press conference, reading the message of her husband from Adiala jail, Rawalpindi. She

told that her husband was of the opinion that the Punjab’s rights had been betrayed since

1985 and that he would reclaim these rights through ballot. She also said that NPP (Khar

group) would support all such parties and alliances which have struggled for the

restoration of democracy.

Mr. Nafees Siddiqui and Mr. Nasrullah Khatak were also present in the

conference to support this new faction of the NPP. On 11 October 1988, Khar expressed

his willingness to join the PPP unconditionally, but it could never be formalized.

Suspending the sentence of the Special Military Court for 14 years imprisonment, Khar

was granted bail by a Division Bench of the Lahore High Court on October 25. Later on

he announced that he will give no party manifesto for these elections but will try to fulfill

the mission of his guide, friend and the leader─ Zulifqar Ali Bhutto.

148

Table 4.4: NPP (K’S) POSITION IN THE 1988 ELECTIONS IN PUNJAB

Year Party Candidates Votes %age Seats

P.A.

Seats

N.A.

1988 NPP (K) 42 146662 1.14 1 1

1990 - - - - - -

1993 - - - - - -

1997 - - - - - -

SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan, Reports on the General Elections 1988,

1990, 1993, and 1997.

The party nominated 42 nominees for the Provincial Assembly elections in

Punjab, who won 146662 votes but could secure only one seat in the assembly. It could,

however pocket another seat in the National Assembly as well. The results show that the

party could not fare well mainly because of the lesser level of institutionalization. This

proved the last election when the NPP (Khar) came in its individual capacity. Since then

Khar had merged his group in the PPP and was granted the portfolio of the Minister for

Water and Power during the second term of PPP government under Benazir Bhutto from

1993 to 1996. The table 4.2 shows the performance of NPP (Khar group) in the General

Elections 1988.

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4.3 PAKISTAN AWAMI ITTEHAD (PAI) / PAKISTAN PEOPLES ALLIANCE (PPA)

A rightist alliance was formed with the efforts of Air Marshal (retired) Asghar Khan in

the name of Pakistan Awami Ittehad (PAI) on 8 October 1988. The same alliance was

named as the Pakistan Peoples Alliance (PPA) also. The alliance was consisting of three

parties: Pakistam Muslim League (Junejo), the Tehrik-e-Istiklal, and the Jamiat-e-Ulema-

i-Islam (Noorani). The leaders of all these respective parties Muhammad Khan Junejo,

Asghar Khan and Maulana Shah Ahmad Noorani commenced a dialogue in this regard on

September 18, 1988. Three sub committees were formed in this inaugural meeting to

chalk out an arrangement to accommodate all the partners in this alliance. The second

round of talks was held in Lahore on September 21, 1988 to settle down the electoral

agenda and a final composition of the alliance.

On 8 October formation of the alliance was formally announced. It was resolved

in this meeting that the alliance will have no formal head. Maulana Shah Ahmad Noorani

was declared founder Convenor of the alliance and Major General (Retired) M. H. Insari

of the JUP was nominated Secretary General of the PAI for three months. The meeting

also decided that the alliance would contest under one flag and one election symbol. The

alliance leaders pronounced in addition that their doors were open for all parties that

would like to join the Pakistan Awami Ittehad. The alliance also carried out the

requirement of formulating a manifest but as a textual formality. Preamble of the

manifesto reviewed the political scenario with the dimension that the country was passing

through an acute internal as well as external crisis. All the parties in this alliance had their

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respective manifestoes providing solution to resolve these problems. But repeated Martial

Laws and a prolonged dictatorial rule had damaged the democratic process in the country

severely.

All the parties in this alliance had formulated an agreed upon programme while

keeping their respective manifestoes aside. This programme would prove a panacea to

this entire critical situation. Thus a ten point programme as manifesto of the PAI was

announced by the Secretary General of the alliance M. H. Ansari. It included:

preservation of the ideology of Pakistan; establishing an absolute supremacy of Quran

and Sunnah through an effective implementation of Nizam-e-Mustafa; equal rights for all

citizens; religions freedom for the communities; removal of the repressive Jageerdari

system; to develop an invincible defence system of the country; to introduce a sustainable

economic system; ensure a complete provincial autonomy; awarding freedom of speech

and the democratic process; and enhancing the integrity and solidarity of the state of

Pakistan.

Though initially the alliance was declared for five years but the leaders of the

alliance gave explanation that the PAI was not merely an election alliance nevertheless it

was a permanent body. It however proved exactly otherwise when the alliance could not

survive for even more than ten days. It was only ten days of the declaration of the alliance

that the two factions of the Pakistan Muslim League ─ Junejo and Fida ─ unified as a

single Muslim League under the president ship of Muhammad Khan Junejo. By the time

both the factions were components of two different alliances. The Fida group was one of

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the member parties of the Islami Jomhoori Ittehad (IJI) while the Junejo league was a

component of the Pakistan Awami Itthad. Such reunification of two factions of the PML

naturally jeopardised future of both the aforementioned alliances. Muhammad Khan

Junejo however, announced that respective alliances of both factions would remain intact.

On the other side Air Marshal (R) Asghar Khan also made a similar announcement that

the reunification of two factions of the Muslim League would have no effect on tri-party

Alliance of the PPA. At the same time Muhammad Khan Junejo, president of the united

Muslim League was of the view that an election alliance between all the compatible

parties was essential to provide a better choice to the voters for elections. That is why he

declared that he and his colleagues would go to the meetings of both the alliances i.e. the

IIJ and the PAI. Iqbal Ahmad Khan Secretary General of the united Muslim League,

however proposed a greater alliance, of the two alliances the IDA and the PPA but with

the preservation of due interest of both the alliances. In such a state of affairs both sides

were also willing to enter into such a grand Alliance, but each side on its own terms. The

IDA had proposed that the PPA should take up an organizational structure of the IDA, its

seven points programme as well as the election symbol. The PPA convener Maulana

Shah Ahmad Noorani conversely announced that any party concurring with the PPA’s

manifesto was acceptable to its wrinkle.

The main contention in the way of such a grand alliance was posed by the two

demands of the PPA. Maulana Noorani and Asghar Khan had demanded for removal of

the caretaker governments and exclusion of the Jamat Islami from the Ittehad. Having

none of these demands met these two alliances ─ the PPA and the IJI ─ could not agree

to make a greater election alliance. Both the alliances maintained their separate entities

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and contested elections with their distinctive programmes and symbols. It however was

decided that none of these alliances would field its candidates against the other. This

agreement on seat adjustment put the Muslim League in perplexity. Having dual

affiliation with two rival alliances it was not clear that which election symbol would be

preferred by the league candidates. The leaders of the JUP and the TI announced that the

Muslim League candidates would contest elections from the PPA’s platform with tractor

as their electoral symbol on the other side leaders of the IJI were claiming that symbol of

the PML candidates would use symbol of the IJI i.e. bicycle. This confusion was resolved

on October 18, 1988 when the Pakistan Muslim League decided to steer with the IJI.

Thus its short lived alliance with the PPA came to an ultimate end just after ten days of

configuration of the PPA.

Table 4.5: PAI’S POSITION IN THE 1988 ELECTIONS IN PUNJAB

Year Party Candidates Votes %age Seats

P.A.

Seats

N.A.

1988 PAI 142 622983 4.86 2 3

1990 - - - - - -

1993 - - - - - -

1997 - - - - - -

SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan, Reports on the General Elections 1988, 1990, 1993, and 1997.

Though the Pakistan people’s Alliance was disintegrated but the JUP and the TIP

leadership decided to contest the elections under the symbol of Tractor, the symbol of the

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PPA, so the PPA was left only with the JUP and the TI. Maulana Noorani affirmed that

the alliance would continue its struggle for enforcement of Nizam-e-Musatafa,

democracy, solidarity and integrity of the country. It nominated 142 candidates against

240 total seats of the Provincial Assembly of Punjab. They got 622983 votes (4.86%) in

aggregate and were able to secure only two seats. The alliance however was able to

secure three other seats out of total 115 seats of the National Assembly in Punjab.

Though this alliance could not fare well on its part however it caused a big damage to the

IJI which had to lose a number of seats at the hands of the PPP which emerged as the

largest single party in the General Elections 1988.

4.4 PAKISTAN DEMOCRATIC ALLIANCE (PDA) The Peoples Democratic Alliance (PDA) was widely perceived as the strangest of

alliances. It had been formed as an expedient election tactic to bring the PPP out of an

isolationist design. This electoral alliance for the General Elections 1990 was basically a

composition of four parties: i- the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP); ii- the Tehrik-e-Istiqlal

(TI); iii- the Pakistan Muslim League (Qasim Group); and iv-the Tehrik-e-Nifiz-e-Fiqa

Jafria (TNFJ). It emerged as an alliance of strange collaborators: Benazir Bhutto, Air

Marshal (Retd.) Asghar Khan, Allama Sajid Naqvi and Malik Qasim.

Malik Qasim who was heading his own small faction of the Pakistan Muslim

League could not enter the assembly in the 1988 elections. He was the only scion of the

defunct MRD and was later accommodated by Benazir Bhutto who patronised him by

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appointing him first as advisor and then as chairman of the Federal Anti-corruption

Committee in her government.

The instance of Allama Sajid Ali Naqvi, chief of the TNFJ was also not so

different. The TNFJ could also not win any seat in the 1988 elections. It otherwise had

supported the PPP in some of the areas. This time its leadership had decided to enter into

a direct alliance with the PPP. Syed Munir Hussain Gailani, President of the TNFJ’s

political committee announced that the TNFJ was prepared to extend electoral

cooperation to the PPP. Since the PPP had always bagged Shia votes, performance the

TNFJ at the polling booths was not at all enviable.

Almost same was the performance of the Tehrik-e-Istiqlal (TI) at the electoral

front. Being a component of the PAI in 1988 it insisted that the TI would get a generous

share of seats. The party however fared badly and its chief Asghar Khan his son and all

other nominees of the Tehrik lost their seats. In the 1990 elections the TI decided to join

hands with the PPP with a hope that such an alliance would go in its favour. The alliance

between the PPP and the Tehrik-e-Istiqlal (TI) was announced on August 29, 1990 after a

meeting of the leaders of the two parties ─ Benazir Bhutto and Asghar Khan. A four

members committee including Farooq Ahmad Khan Leghari and Malik Hakmeen Khan

from the PPP and Khurshed Mahmood Kasuri and Zafar Ali shah from the TI was

selected to discuss and decide the modalities of the alliance including its name, division

of seats and other related issues.

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Mian Khurshed Mahmood Kasuri declared that the alliance would not be confined

to contest the election alone. Following its manifesto the PPP was a natural ally of the

TIP. Both the parties sought after a welfare state, non-sectarian society, profound

embedded democracy, and a contemporary approach to the solution of different

problems. Both the parties yearned for a welfare state, deep rooted democracy, non-

sectarian society and a modern approach to the solution of all the political problems. The

secretary general of the TIP, Mian Khurshed Mahmood Kasuri, had also the same sort of

opinion that the TI was ideologically closer to the PPP than any other political party.

Both the parties had also remained allies in the MRD. Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan also

expressed his willingness to join this alliance, but Asghar khan opposed this offer. He

held a meeting with Benazir Bhutto and convinced her not to include any other party in

the alliance.

Asghar Khan was austerely against the further extension of the alliance whereas

no member of his party could succeed on any seat of the National Assembly or of the

Provincial Elections of Punjab. His party had no strength in any other province. Though

he contested the 1990 election against the main leader of the IJI, Nawaz Sharif from the

constituency number N.A. 95, Lahore IV and held impressive processions with the

support of the PPP and the TNFJ workers, but even then he could not fare well. The

reason being his own stern behaviour with the political workers and that the PPP workers

had not accepted him whole heartedly as their candidate.

It seemed that the PPP was a loser in this alliance. It was for the first time since its

inception in 1967, that the Pakistan People’s Party had relinquished its name and had

156

opted to contest elections from another podium. This it had not done even with the MRD

which had lent a hand to bring the party back to life after a long paralysis since 1977.

Still Benazir was not willing to make any such alliance but she had to take this unwanted

decision mainly for two reasons. First, she wanted to curtail the influence of her opponent

alliance of the IJI especially in Punjab. Secondly, she wanted to secure her party from the

suspicion that if the PPP was banned its candidates at least would be there in the field

from another platform. With this view the alliance took Khurshed Kasuri as its General

Secretary from Punjab. The Supreme Council of this alliance however comprised 88

members, including four heads of the component parties to look after its affairs. On the

other hand the Pakistan People’s Party managed to convince the alliance to contest the

elections with its old symbol, the arrow. The other office bearers included Syed Muneer

Hussain Gailani (TNFJ) Additional Secretary, Syed Kabir Ali Wasti (PML Qasim) as

treasurer, Malik Hakmeen Khan (PPP) as coordination secretary and Iqbal Haider (PPP)

as information Secretary.

The PDA manifesto for the elections of October 1990 criticized the action of

president Ghulam Ishaq Khan with the argument that the unexpected and arbitrary

dissolution of the National Assembly followed by the termination of the four Provincial

Assemblies and a one sided accountability had pushed the nation into a grave crisis.

Moreover the manifesto addressed almost all the problems and issues of domestic and

national level. It declared unemployment as a fundamental problem of the society and

pledged to solve it by job opportunities on large scale in public sector through rapid

industrialisation, unemployment allowance and technical training programme and

through launching the KARGAR Bank. The manifesto proposed to introduce

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instrumental changes for uplifting the rural areas by providing them the Local Dehi

Police, the Rural Courts, the Local Revenue Courts, land ownership for the landless

‘Haries’ and Kisan Bank. For urban areas the PDA promised to establish the Ward

Courts. A special attention would also be paid to the public urban transport and special

financial institutions for urban people. In its manifesto, the PDA proclaimed special

consideration for the labour class, the students, the teachers, the lawyers and for the

government servants. Complete freedom of press and information media was declared as

a milestone of the PDA’s ideology.

With reference to the traders and the business community, the PDA expressed its

firm belief that the future prosperity of the country was rooted in the success or failure of

the business community. So, effectual changes would be initiated in the prevalent income

tax, custom and excise schedules to make the simple and less prone to bureaucratic

meddling. Similar kinds of measures were suggested for industrial development.

Agriculture Reforms to diminish the influence of feudalism and to rectify the uneven

distribution of land were promised.

To enhance women participation in the society, five percent quota of employment

for women in public sector, special seats in the National and Provincial Assemblies and

launching of Federal Woman Police were also announced. Replacement of separate

electorates with a system of joint electorates and complete safeguard of minorities rights

were promised for all the minority communities. A programme to increase educational

expenditure at least up to 4.5 percent of the GNP would be introduced and guaranteed by

158

law for the improvement of education. Supremacy of Islam with an assurance of justice

was announced. Extraordinary steps for the betterment of transport system, for drug

control, for the national defence and enhancement of a peaceful nuclear programme were

promised in the manifesto. A non-aligned foreign policy centred upon the national

interest to promoting peace and friendship with the neighbouring countries would be

adopted by the PDA government. For eradication of corruption, anti-corruption laws and

rules were promised to be made to give effective and exemplary punishment to those

involved in corruption. In this way the manifesto ended up with the promises of social

aims and sustainable infrastructural developments.

Since the PDA was formed to counter the influence of IJI, which had its power

centre in Punjab, eventually, organisational structure of the PDA could be organised only

in Punjab. It nominated 231 candidates against 240 seats of the Provincial Assembly of

Punjab, who could pocket 3994191 votes (29.20%), but only with 10 seats (4.16%) in

hand along with 14 seats of the National Assembly in Punjab. The PDA blamed that the

elections were totally rigged. What so ever the case may be, it is out of the scope of the

present study. One thing is clear that the PDA could neither institutionalise its

organisational structure nor could it up hold its commitments in the forth coming years.

As Benazir Bhutto had decided to make its members resign from all the

assemblies in April 1992, but it could never be formalised till the end of IJI government

in 1993. Then the PDA had taken a decision in 1991 that it would never cooperate with

the IJI at any level be it provincial or national, but quite contrarily it formed a coalition

government with the IJI in Baluchistan. It also tried to form such coalition government in

159

Sind, which the MQM never let to be formed. Thirdly, the PDA never carried out its

commitments made in All Parties Conference summoned by Nawabzada Nasrullah in

September 1990. Disappointed by such response of the PDA, Nawabzada shifted his

focus from the APC to form another alliance (NDA) in April 1992. Finally, Benazir

Bhutto decided to launch a “Long March” against the IJI government from the platform

of the PDA. On this point the alliance of PDA was split into two parts.

Table 4.6: PDA’S POSITION IN THE 1993 ELECTIONS IN PUNJAB

Year Party Candidates Votes %age Seats

P.A.

Seats

N.A.

1988 PAI 142 622983 4.86 2 3

1990 - - - - - -

1993 - - - - - -

1997 - - - - - -

SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan, Reports on the General Elections 1988, 1990, 1993, and 1997.

One faction led by Iftikhar Gillani and Meraj Khalid was of the view to initiate

dialogue with the IJI government and to adopt only constitutional means of agitation. On

the other side second faction included Asghar Khan and Aitzaz Ahsan were of the view

that negotiations with the IJI government could only be initiated if they were ready to

dissolve the assemblies to hold fresh elections under a Care Taker national government.

Nawaz Sharif tried his level best to settle down the situation through dialogue but the

160

PDA leadership from Punjab did not let it be till the dissolution of Nawaz government in

1993, which was also an end point of the PDA.

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Chapter 5

POLITICAL PARTIES AND POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT IN PUNJAB 1993-1999

5.1 JAMIAT-E- ULEMA-E-ISLAM (F)

The Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam is a religio-political and owes its origin to the Dar al-Uloom

Deoband which was established at Deoband, India in 1867. The Ulema generally

refrained from expressing opinion on politics. In 1905, Mahmood Masan titled Sheikh al

Hind became the third head of the institution, he started a new phase of political activity

against the imperial power in India. He provoked the Ulema to launch the Jamiat-al-

Ulema-i-Hind in 1919 (Nehru, 1936: 278-79). Passing through different phases its anti

imperialist designs were converted in to anti Pakistan plans in 1940s (Shahjahanpuri:

115-16.) The curtail elections of 1945-46 instigated the pro-League Ulema to organize a

separate party of their own, which they launched in the name of Jamiat al-Ulama-i-Islam

in Calcutta on October 26-29, 1945. Maulana Shabir Ahmad Uthmani a dissident of

Jamiat al-Ulema-i-Hind was elected its president in absentia (Anwar al-Hasan, 1966:

133-36).

Maulana Mufti Mahmood, another graduate of Dar al-Uloom Deobamd inherited

the same party and made it more structured. He participated in several movements in

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Pakistan; some noted among them were Tehrik-e-Khatm-e-Nabuwat of 1953, Tehrik-e-

Nizam-e-Mustafa of 1977, and the movement for the Restoration of Democracy (MRD).

It emerged as a party which was some what different from all the other religious parties.

It is the only religious oriented party which not only had a concrete mass following, but it

also had a support among the peasantry. On the other hand JUI’s anti imperialist and a

nationalist character endeared the party to progressive and nationalist elements. Since its

formation the party had maintained a revolutionary flavour of its own, which appealed to

substantially a large section of the lower class both in the rural as well as urban areas.

That is why, the party always won a considerable share in every election not to be

ignored by the other parties. In 1962 elections two of its members were elected: Mufti

Mahmood as an MNA and Maulana Ghulam Ghous Jazarvi (Afzal, 1998: 136).

The JUI polled the most votes after the PPP in the General Election 1977.

Moreover its electoral performance proved it to be the most popular political force in

NWFP, where the JUI secured more than 25 percent votes in the same elections. This

demonstration of electoral strength of late Maulana Mufti Mahmood’s JUI had surprised

every one. By then the party was taken for granted by the government, press and other

political forces. Soon after that, the party started playing a considerable role in the

national politics of the country. The party’s main leadership, late Mufti Mahmood and his

son and successor Maulana Fazlur Rahman won respect for their bold and consistent

policies.

Since its formal inauguration as a political party in May 4-5, 1968, at a huge rally

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at Mochi Gate Lahore the party has tasted power twice: first, in provincial coalition

ministries with the NAP in NWFP and Baluchistan, and second, when it sent two

ministers to the federal cabinet in the early days of PNA’s attachment with Zia

government. The NAP-JUI coalition governments with Mufti Mahmood as NWFP Chief

Minister and Sardar Attaullah Mengal in Baluchistan, enjoyed power for only nine

months. Mufti Mahmood resigned from his office of chief ministership in protest to the

dismissal of the NAP Governors of NWFP and Baluchistan and also as a show of

solidarity with Mengal’s dismissed ministry.

It was for the first time that a party in power resigned to uphold political principle.

Later on Mufti Mahmood’s decision to join the Martial Law regime of Zia was highly

criticized. Although the party had failed to force General Zia to enforce an Islamic

system immediately, but it could legitimately claim some credit from its supporters for

having started certain Islamic measures during its nine months rule in NWFP. These

measures included declaring Friday as holiday, banning liquor, improving standard of

religious schools and enforcing fiscal austerity in the provincial administration. Further

Mufti Mahmood got Urdu declared official language of the province against the wishes

of the NAP for Pushto. He also prevailed over the central government of the PPP to

supply NWFP its appropriate share of water from the Indus.

The JUI followed its manifesto, formulated in 1969 and first released in Sargodha

in the same year. The document laid stress on enforcing an Islamic System. On October

14, 1980, the death of Mufti Mahmood in the Darul Uloom Binori in Karachi was indeed

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a solemn setback to the party. He basically was a symbol of solidity in the party. Being

general Secretary of the party he bounded his party leadership together including

Maulana Abdullah Darkhwasti, Maulana Siraj Dinpurri, Maulana Khan Muhammad

Kundian Sharif, and Maulana Abdul Karim Ber Sharif. Later on they all were supposed

to extend their favours to Mufti’s son and successor Maulana Fazlur Rahman which they

could not do. Eventually the party was split into two factions: pro Zia and anti Zia.

Maulana Darkhwasti dissociated himself from the party accusing Maulana Fazlur

Rahman of unilaterally joining the MRD, which had the PPP as its main component

along with other “un-Islamic and secular” parties. While Fazlur Rahman played a major

role in the MRD. The Darkhwast group joined hands with General Zia, and participated

in the 1985 party less elections. Subsequently, the JUI Darkhwasti group joined the anti

PPP alliance of IJI, but the Fazlur Rahman faction decided to contest elections as a

separate entity in the 1988 elections.

The areas of D. I. Khan in NWFP and Dera Ghazi Khan in Punjab were won by

Mufi Mahmood in the 1977 elections from the platform of PNA defeating the PPP

candidates. His son Fazlur Rahman also decided to contest elections from both these

constituencies in the 1988 elections. Although a split in the party affected its position but

still it was able to survive the 1988 elections as a separate party. The JUI (F) nominated

25 members for the Provincial Assembly seats in Punjab, who got in aggregate 76534

(0.53%) votes but the party could secure only one seat in these elections. In the 1990

election the IJI (F) nominated 34 members for provincial Assembly of Punjab, who

obtained a total number of 54 911 votes, but could not secure even a single seat this time.

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It was for the first time in the 1993 elections that the JUI (F) decided to make an electoral

alliance with the other parties at the national level.

The alliance was formed with the name of Islami Jamhuri Mahaz (IJM) between

the two parties: Jamiat-e-Ulema-i-Islam (Fazlur Rahman group) and Jamiat-e-Ulema-i-

Pakistan of Maulana Shah Ahmad Noorani. Both the parties put forward 46 collectively

from the platform of IJM, who caught 123874 votes in total but still with no seat in these

elections too. The party came up in its individual capacity in the elections of 1997, but

finding its votes scattered in different pockets of Baluchistan and NWFP with a very

bleak strength in Punjab, the party decided to nominate no member in this province at all.

Thus, it seams that the party gradually lost its vote bank in Punjab, because it could not

institutionalize its structure much in the province and ultimately it was eliminated from

the scene at last. An overall performance of JUI (F) in all the subsequent elections is

given in the table 5.1.

Table 5.1: JUI’s (F) POSITION IN THE 1988, 1990, 1993 and 1997 ELECTIONS IN PUNJAB

Year Party/ Alliance

Candidates Votes %age Seats P.A.

Seats N.A.

1988 JUI (F) 25 76534 0.53 1 -

1990 JUI (F) 34 54911 00.40 - -

1993 IJM 46 123874 0.85 - -

1997 - - - - - -

SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan, Reports on the General Elections 1988, 1990, 1993, and 1997.

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5.2 PAKISTAN ISLAMIC FRONT (PIF)

In the General Elections 1993 all the religious parties tried to part to their ways from the

liberal or the secular parties. They indeed wanted to assess their vote bank to present an

altogether different agenda before the society. Accordingly, they all collectively opt for a

joint policy of making no alliance with any non religious party at all. With this

perspective, different religious groups tried to assemble all the religious parties on a

single platform to form a United Islamic Alliance, but it could never be arrived at.

However, in continuance to this very policy none of the major religious parties entered in

to alliance with any non religious party, with the exception of some seat adjustments in

NWFP.

All of the religious parties either made alliances or seat adjustments with their like

minded religious parties or contested these elections alone in their own individual

capacity. Most of the religious parties thus formed small alliances with two or more

religious parties. This move of assessing religious vote bank in the society culminated

into the formation of three distinct alliances. Notwithstanding of sharp sectarian and

ideological differences, all the three alliances demonstrated an intimated coordination to

work out mutual seat adjustments on a number of electoral adjustments in Punjab. These

three alliances were: the Pakistan Islamic Front (PIF), Islami Jamhoori Mahaz (IJM), and

the Mutahidda Deeni Mahaz (MDM). The PIF was essentially comprised of the rank and

file of the Jamat Islami (JI) including the Jamat sympathizers and some retired army

generals. The party was described by most of its supporters and even some independent

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analysts, as the party of the future. It was initially formed to target mainly the elections of

1995. The front however could not institutionalize its structure to survive it even after

1993. It could not even obtain a broad based structure mainly because of its image of

being a new brand of the Jamat Islami with a different style of politics.

The party basically was a brainchild of the Jamat’s Amir Qazi Hussain Ahmad on

the inspiration of the Akjerian Islamic Salvation Front (FIS). It followed the same style of

election campaign on the same footings of the Jamat Islami. The personality of Qazi

Hussain Ahmad instead of the party was the focal point in the Front. This style of

campaign was not accepted even by the Jamat’s old conservative elements. It indeed was

seen as an attempt to build a personality cult keeping the real purpose of the Islamic Front

aside. Supporters of Qazi Hussain Ahmad however considered their style necessary for

evolving Jamat’s own leadership instead of depending upon other unreliable leaders like

Mian Nawaz Sharif.

Having no considerable success in winning a mass public support inspite of a long

struggle political struggle of forty years, the Qazi decided to change the campaign style

of Jamat this time. He adopted a pragmatic approach of practical politics with populist

slogans, national songs with music, issue oriented election campaign, along with an

extensive media publicity and continuous touring the country to “deliver social justice to

peoples at their door step”. He openly criticized both Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz for

being corrupt and insincere and presented himself as the third alternative to be tested.

Unlike other two main contenders i.e. PPP and PML (N), PIF presented itself as an anti-

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west party. The party leadership expressed that their whole campaign is not meant for this

election but it will help to lay down the foundation for a real Islamic Front in the next

general elections, which could never happen.

The Front indeed lost its momentum looking the results of the 1993 elections. It

nominated a large number of 139 candidates with the big claims of a splendid victory.

Contrarily, they all were able to get only 2.43 percent of the total cast vote and secured

only two seats in the Provincial Assembly of Punjab and none in the national Assembly

seats from Punjab. The Front may never contest any further election with the same

identity. The electoral performance is given in the table 5.2.

Table 5.2: PIF’s POSITION IN THE 1993 ELECTIONS IN PUNJAB

Year Party/ Alliance

Candidates Votes %age Seats P.A.

Seats N.A.

1988 - - - - - -

1990 - - - - - -

1993 PIF 139 350837 2.43 2

1997 - - - - - -

SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan, Reports on the General Elections 1988,

1990, 1993, and 1997.

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5.3 MUTAHIDA DEENI MAHAZ (MDM)

The Mutahida Deeni Mahaz (MDM) was an alliance comprising of a number of small

and large parties. The most important components of this alliance however, were Jamiat-

e-Ulema-e-Islam, Samiul Haq group JUI (S), and the Sipah-e-Sihaba Pakistan (SSP). The

JUI (S) faction had a small number of seats in the previous National Assembly from

NWFP, and through this alliance with SSP tried to make a dint in the popularity of the

religious oriented Muslim League candidates in the central and southern Punjab. The

Sipah-e-Sihaba, an extremist off-Shoot of the JUI, had its headquarter in Jhang, where it

had built an anti Shia violent group base. The Mahaz had nominated 50 candidates for

this election which polled 163572 votes (1.13%) and could win only one seat in the

Provincial Legislature of Punjab. (See the table 5.3)

Table 5.3: MDM’s POSITION IN THE 1993 ELECTIONS IN PUNJAB

Year Party/ Alliance

Candidates Votes %age Seats P.A.

Seats N.A.

1988 - - - - - -

1990 - - - - - -

1993 MDM 50 163572 1.13 01 01

1997 - - - - - -

SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan, Reports on the General Elections 1988, 1990, 1993, and 1997.

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5.4 MUSLIM ITTEHAD PAKISTAN (MIP)

The Muslim Ittehad Pakistan was basically an ensemble of the Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan

(SSP), formerly known as Anjuman-e-Sipah-e-Sahaba (ASS). The SSP was indeed a

sectarian organisation generally engaged in extremist activities mainly targeting the Shia

community in Pakistan. Opting a hard line policy mainly on sectarian issues some of the

fanatic ulemas broke their ways from the mainstream Deobandi organisation ─ the JUI ─

and laid foundation of the SSP in September 1985. Maulana Haq Nawaz Ghangvi,

Maulana Zia-ur-Rahamn Farooqi, Maulana Azam Tariq and Maulana Esrar-ul Haq

Qasmi were included amongst its founding members. The party is also considered to be

established at the wishes of Zia-ul-Haq regime as a part of its plan to resist the pro-

democracy forces assembling against it.

Along with its sectarian activities it also participated in the political activities after

the death of Zia. The more radical elements in the SSP decided to form another faction in

the name of Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) in 1996. It was widely considered as the armed

wing of the outfit Sipah-e-Sahaba, though the SSP denied it. Some other religious parties

in Pakistan like the Jamat-e-Islami and the Jamiat-e-Ulema-Islam (JUI-S) had allegedly

extended their support and assistance to the SSP. In the 1993 General Elections the SSP

had contested the elections but under the umbrella of the JUI (S) and one of its members

was appointed as minister in the Coalition Government in Punjab in 1993.

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Having a great resistance of its hard-line policies the SSP decided to contest the

General Election of 1997 in the name of a newly launched party i.e. Muslim Ittehad

Pakistan (MIP). The MIP had not announced its proper structure nevertheless it was

relying mainly on the already existing structure of the SSP. It aimed at declaring Pakistan

a Sunni state protecting Sunnis and the Shariah Law as prime law in the country. It also

aimed at restoring the Caliphate system and had declared Shiites to be non-Muslims. The

party had its structure only in Punjab having support of JUI (F) at least in doctrine if not

in methods. The MIP had some strong pockets of support in some towns and small cities

of Punjab.

A main reason behind formation of the party in Jhang lay in the feudal structure

of Punjabi society. For the most part of society’s political and economic power was

concentrated in the large land owners mostly Shias who basically were in minority as

compared to the Sunni community. Though the home base of the MIP i.e. Jhang had

mainly a number of large land holdings but had also developed as a market area with

enhancing the power of middle class businessmen, traders and educated serving class etc.

Such newly emerging middle class had started challenging the traditional feudal system,

which the SSP had tried to transform in to political force through the MIP in the 1997

elections.

The MIP nominated only four candidates for the Provincial Assembly of Punjab,

who won only one seat from its home ground, in the constituency number PP-65 Jhang

V. This seat was taken by chief of the party Maulana Muhammad Azam Tariq.

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Table 5.4: MIP’S POSITION IN THE 1997 ELECTIONS IN PUNJAB Year Party/

Alliance Candidates Votes %age Seats

P.A. Seats N.A.

1988 - - - - - -

1990 - - - - - -

1993 - - - - - -

1997 MIP 04 27378 0.22 1

SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan, Reports on the General Elections 1988, 1990, 1993, and 1997.

In aggregate the MIP got 27378 votes (0.22 %) out of which 25501 votes were

pocketed by Maulana Azam Tariq. The party was confident to win at least one National

Assembly seat from Jhang but it could get none.

5.5 NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC ALLIANCE (NDA)

After the 1988 elections when the PPP did not support Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan in the

Presidential elections against Ghulam Ishaq Khan, a gulf was created between the PDP

and the PPP. Though Nawabzada never expressed any resentment against Benazir Bhutto

or any other leader of the PPP, however he kept opposing the PPP government till its

dissolution on August 1990. In the 1990 elections Nawabzada had to face defeat mainly

due to the opposition of the PPP. In by-elections however the PPP did not oppose him but

even then he was defeated by Ghulam Mustafa Khar of the NPP and was relentlessly

shocked.

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In the meantime Nawabzada developed differences with the IJI government

mainly on the Gulf Crises and the US intervention in Iraq. Nawabzada summoned an All

Parties Conference (APC) to formulate public opinion on this issue in September 1990.

The conference was also attended by the PDA ─ an alliance made by the PPP. All the

twenty five parties present in the conference announced to not extend any sort of

cooperation to the IJI government. They also demanded from the PDA to ask their

members to resign from the Provincial Cabinet of Baluchistan to detach itself from the IJI

government in total, which the PDA was not agreed to. This difference damaged the

credibility of the APC and made Nawabzada Nasrullah to form another alliance

collaborating only with the parties which were part of neither the PDA nor the IJI.

Having ensured support initially from Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti (JWP) and

Ghulam Mustafa Jatoi (NPP), Nawabzada started consulting other political parties. In

April 1992 he was able to convince a number of parties to form an alliance in a meeting

held in Karachi. The JWP, the NPP (Jatoi), the PDP, the NPP (Khar), the AJP, the PNP

and the MKP, pledged their support to the alliance. All the participants decided in the

meeting to arrange convention on 17 and 18 September in Lahore where a formal

foundation of the alliance would be laid down. The convention could not be held as per

schedule due to the heavy rains and floods. It was rescheduled to be held on the 1st and

2nd November. Nawabzada extended an invitation to all the political parties to attend the

convention as observer.

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Benazir Bhutto however, announced a couple of days prior to the holding of

convention that no member of the PDA would attend it. The convention nevertheless

went successful with a participation of five hundred participants from different parties.

Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan was elected as chairman of the alliance. Later on in another

meeting held at Karachi Abdul Hafeez Pirzada was elected as secretary general of the

alliance on 27 November. Ghulam Mustafa Jatoi, Meraj Muhammad Khan and Ghulam

Mustafa Khar were elected as members of supreme council of the alliance.

Initially, it was apprehended that the alliance was basically B-team of the

President Ghulam Ishaq Khan in his confrontation with the Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

Whilst adding a point of the removal of the eighth amendment of the Constitution to

decrease the powers of the president to dissolve the National Assembly under Article 58-

2 (b), the alliance removed this apprehension. It however decided that the alliance would

carry on his movement against Nawaz Sharif and would also request the President to

dissolve the Nawaz government and to establish a national government.

The NDA pledged in its manifesto to introduce the system of proportional

representation based on parity list and divisional constituencies and strengthen federal

parliamentary system and promote social democracy for making the government

machinery responsive to national aspirations. The other salient features of the manifesto

included provision of maximum provincial autonomy; to stop economic and financial

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loot and plunder particularly the process of denationalisation and privatisation;

compensation of all depositors of financial companies, Taj company and cooperative

societies; devolution of power; separation of judiciary from executive; introduce

economic reforms for participatory development; set up a system of accountability;

abolition of all discriminatory laws to provide rightful place to women; extend moral,

material and political support to Kashmir and Palestine for their right of self

determination; make South Asia a nuclear free zone; sign the NPT on regional basis;

reduction in defence expenditures; promotion of cooperation among countries in the

region; pursue independent foreign policy and to develop friendly relations with all

neighbours, OIC and Central Asian countries.

With all these points in consideration, the NDA at the same time tried its level

best to institute a grand opposition alliance with the merger of three alliances of the

NDA, the PDA and the IJM, but this plan could also not succeed due to its rejection by

Benazir Bhutto. Other than the JWP the IJM also demanded Benazir to detach her party

from the coalition government in Baluchistan. In response Benazir demanded from the

IJM to accept her as opposition leader and from Nawabzada Nasrullah to nominate her as

chairperson of the APC or all the opposition parties resign simultaneously from

Parliament along with the PPP. Both the parties present in the IJM i.e. the JUI and the

JUP rejected this demand of Benazir with the view that leadership of a woman was

against the teachings of Islam. At the same time Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti of JWP

threatened that if the NDA extended its cooperation to the PDA, he would detach himself

from the alliance. On the other side Ghulam Mustafa Jatoi, Ghulam Mustafa Khar, Abdul

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Hafeez Pirzada and Maulana Kausar Niazi were of the view to cooperate with the PDA

by participating in her long march against the government. Finding no other way to

resolve this deadlock Nawabzada Nasrullah summoned a meeting of the supreme council

of the NDA and decided that the NDA would not participate in the long march however

any of its ally party willing to participate could go in its personal capacity. Immediately

after that Jatoi, Khar, Pirzada and Kausar Niazi declared in a press conference to join the

long march of the PDA and the NDA was withered away.

Though the NDA had fell apart in the general Elections 1993, but even then

Nawabzada decided to nominate twelve members for the Provincial Assembly elections

in Punjab and eight others for the national Assembly seats in Punjab.

Table 5.5: NDA’S POSITION IN THE 1993 ELECTIONS IN PUNJAB

Year Party/ Alliance

Candidates Votes %age Seats P.A.

Seats N.A.

1988 - - - - - -

1990 - - - - - -

1993 NDA 12 67583 0.47 2 01

1997 - - - - - -

SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan, Reports on the General Elections 1988, 1990, 1993, and 1997.

Securing 67683 votes (0.47%) the NDA was able to win two seats ─ PP-298 and

PP-210, Muzaffargarh III and Muzaffargarh IV respectively ─ in the Provincial

Assembly of Punjab. Both of these seats were won through the personal influence of

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Nawabzada Nasrullah in his home constituencies mainly from the platform of the PDP

instead of the NDA. The NDA also made some seat adjustments with the PPP in these

elections and ultimately it was merged into the same party after joining hand with the

Benazir government after these elections. Thus, this proved the ending point in the

existence of the NDA.

5.6 PAKISTAN DEMOCRATIC PARTY (PDP)

The Peoples Democratic Party was established by Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan in June

1969. Like its founder the party had also travelled a long way before arriving at its final

destination as the PDP. Nawabzada started his political career from the platform of the

Indian National Congress. He switched over from Congress to the Tahrik-e-Khilafat,

from Tahrik-e-Khilafat to the Majlis-e-Ahrar-e-Islam, from Majlis-e-Ahrar-e-Islam to the

Awami League and formed his own faction of the Awami League (Nasrullah Group), and

then he ultimately laid foundation of the PDP. During Yahya regime Nawabzada

conceived an idea to merge like minded smaller parties in to a big political party to

launch a meaningful and effective programme for democratisation of the society on

permanent footing. For this purpose an agreement was signed between two parties, the

Nizam-e-Islam Party (NIP) and the Awami League (Nasrullah Group) in May 1969.

Later on the Justice Party (JP) and the National Democratic Party (NDP) also

decided to join this new party. In this way the PDP was a merger of the aforementioned

four political parties. At the time of merger these four parties were being headed by

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Chaudhary Muhammad Ali (NIP), Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan (A L, Nasrullah Group),

Nurul Amin (NDF), and Air Marshal (Retd.) Asghar Khan (JP). They all were well

known for their moderate views and a strong belief in the solidarity and unity of the

country. Its first convention elected Noorul Amin as the president and Nasim Hassan as

secretary general of the party. Initially the party aimed at creating a democratic social

order on Islamic values and principles of justice, freedom, equality, human dignity and

universal brotherhood in accordance to the Holy Quran and Sunnah.

The PDP took a good start but was soon fell to difficulties, because some of its

founding leaders left the party. First of all Chaudhary Muhammad Ali announced his

retirement from politics on health grounds in November 1969. Then on December 2

1969, Asghar Khan announced his withdrawal from politics claiming that the purpose for

which he had entered politics had been achieved nonetheless he soon launched another

party the Tehrik-i-Istqlal. With the withdrawal of these two prominent leaders some other

leaders and workers also left the PDP which weakened the party even before it could

demonstrate its strength in any electoral exercise. The party however survived the 1970

elections and played an effective role in the opposition ranks from 1971 to 1977 under

the leadership of Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan. It joined the PNA in the 1977 general

elections. When General Zia imposed Martial Law, the PNA joined the government and

the PDP also accepted representation with the induction of its secretary general Arshad

Chaudhary in the federal cabinet.

Later however the PDP left government and distanced itself from the Martial Law

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authorities. Subsequently it joined the anti- Zia political alliance, the Movement for the

Restoration of Democracy (MRD). After Zia’s death the PDP actively participated in the

general election of 1988. Its manifest claimed for a true implementation of Islamic

principles, a welfare society with the fundamental rights for citizens, equal opportunities

for women, freedom of press, provincial autonomy, moral and political support to the

cause of Paletinian Muslims, political solution of the Kashmir issue, tension free South

Asia and a non-aligned foreign policy. It nominated a total number of 17 candidates for

the Provincial Assembly elections in Punjab who got 73726 votes (0.57%) having only

two seats. In addition the party won another seat in the National Assembly of Pakistan

from Punjab. Chief of the party Nawabzada Nasrullah also contested the presidential

election against Ghulam Ishaq Khan in December 1988, but was defeated.

Table 5.6: PDP’S POSITION IN THE 1988, 1990 AND 1997 ELECTIONS IN PUNJAB

Year Party/

Alliance Candidates Votes %age Seats

P.A. Seats N.A.

1988 PDP 17 73726 0.57 2 1

1990 PDP 10 65546 00.48 2 2

1993 - - - - - -

1997 PDP 10 50026 0.41 1

SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan, Reports on the General Elections 1988, 1990, 1993, and 1997.

The PDP was virtually a solo performance of its chief, Nawabzada Nasrullah, so

could not enhance its influence in the subsequent elections of 1990. Though Nawabzada

had always been a strong advocate of a democratic order in the society, but his often and

180

uncompromising behaviour never let him built a wide public support base. He had a

reputation for being a leading champion of pro-democracy struggle. He had had been an

active member of all the anti-government alliances and continued to play a major role in

collecting various political parties on a common platform to struggle against one force or

the other. After facing a defeat in the presidential election in 1988 due to the withdrawal

of support of the PPP, he got annoyed and had formed a new alliance against the PPP

government. The formation of the Combined Opposition Parties (COP) in 1989 and the

abortive no-confidence move against Benazir Bhutto on 23 October 1989 were said to be

his initiatives.

Eventually the PPP which had not nominated its candidate against Nawabzada

Nasrullah in the general elections 1988 had turned its position in the general elections

1990 and had nominated the PDA candidate against him who turned the table to

Nawabzada to put him to defeat in his home constituency of Khangarh. In the 1990

elections the PDP nominated only ten members in the Provincial Assembly election in

Punjab who got 65564 votes (0.48 %) with two seats. The PDP was also able to win two

other seats in the National Assembly from Punjab.

5.7 PAKISTAN MUSLIM LEAGUE (JUNEJO GROUP)

The Pakistan Muslim League has a very bewildering history with an impenetrable

background. The parliament formed as a result of the General Elections 1985, held on

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non-party basis, served as an incubator for hatching this party out of a non-party

parliament. The elected parliament started working from 23 March 1985 and General Zia

nominated Muhammad Khan Junejo as Prime Minister. When the two houses of

parliament i.e. the National Assembly and the Senate began to work they were

automatically divided into two groups. The first group headed by Muhammad Khan

Junejo emerged as official group, whereas the second group headed by Fida Muhammad

Khan came out as the Opposition block. Restoration of the party politics had eventually

become imperative.

To make the things more convenient, the official group got the PML (Pagaro) on

board and elected Muhammad Khan Junejo as leader of the PML. The example set at the

Centre was followed by the provinces. Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, an industrialist

from Lahore, a hand picked politician of Zia and the Chief Minister of Punjab became

provincial president of the party. In this way the PML came into power indirectly,

claiming absolute majority at the Centre as well as in all the four provinces. Soon this

unqualified majority verified the dictum of Huntington when it proved that the level of

participation in the PML had exceeded its process of institutionalisation. Though its

leaders had spread its political tentacles all over the country by opening party offices and

enrolling members followed by the party elections, but the party could not form a solid

political base at the mass level.

Thus the party could not survive the dissolution of Junejo government in May

1988. Eventually, the party was split in to three factions i.e. the PML (Fida), the PML

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(Junejo), and the PML (Pagaro). The PML (J) sympathised with the deposed Prime

Minister Muhammad Khan Junejo, whereas both the PML (Pagaro) in Sind and the PML

(Fida) in Punjab sided with Zia. Muhammad Khan Junejo continued to head his own

faction with Iqbal Ahmad Khan as his secretary general. On the other side, supporters of

Nawaz Sharif in Punjab declared Fida Muhammad Khan as their president with Nawaz

Sharif as secretary general of the party. This total break-up of the party was averted by

Zia’s sudden demise and the forth coming General Elections of 1988. The two main

factions of the PML ─ the PML (J) and the PML (F) ─ were reunited on October 14,

1988 with Junejo as president and Iqbal Ahmad Khan as secretary general of the party.

Nawaz Sharif was elected as the president of Punjab in the new united PML. Later on

Pagara also joined the united PML.

After reunification the PML found itself in a peculiar structural and moral

dilemma that can better be described as a political schizophrenia. The unified League

was simultaneously a member of a three party the Pakistan Peoples’ Alliance (PPA) as

well as a nine-party the Islami Jamhuri Ittehad (IJI). The former advocated abolition of

the caretaker government while the later was an integral part of that. One supported Jihad

in Afghanistan while the other wanted a pullback for the government. One favoured

Islamisation, the other comparatively a secular polity. Under such circumstances it was

not an easy task to finalise a manifesto for the party. Seat allocation for the PML in the

IJI was another subject of bitter in-fighting.

Though the reunited and reconstituted PML was headed by Muhammad Khan

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Junejo, but the real power in the party lay with the caretaker Chief Minister of Punjab,

Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, who eventually compelled Junejo to part with the PPA.

The PML was then a dominant party of the IJI which was ultimately headed by Nawaz

Sharif. Secretary General of the party Iqbal Ahmad Khan declared that the party would

stick to the five point of Muhammad Khan Junejo as the basis of the party’s election

campaign. The proposed plan demanded for the establishment of a society free from

exploitation; granting people a meaningful participation in the decision making process;

poverty elevation; eliminating the economic and political grip of the feudal and capitalist

class and finally a productive exploitation of all the resources of the state in the interest of

common man. Ultimately, however the party had to ideologically content with the seven-

point declaration of the IJI, announced on October 7, at a time when its leader

Muhammad Khan Junejo was still in the PPA. Briefly, the declaration advocated

supremacy of the Islamic Law; equal justice for all with special safeguards for women; an

egalitarian provision of economic opportunities; promotion of nuclear power for peaceful

purposes; independence of Kashmir; a complete support to the Afghan Jihad; and moral

and political support to the Palestine cause. The electoral performance of the IJI is noted

under the heading of the Islami Jamhuri Ittehad in the previous chapter.

A major set back to the PML in the 1988 elections however, was the defeat of its

President, Muhammad Khan Junejo, its former president Pir of Pagaro and its General

Secretary, Iqbal Ahmad Khan. Thus, the Junejo group in the PML lost its influence in the

politics of Punjab. Nawaz group, however, was able to win in the province so had formed

the provincial government in Punjab. Soon the PML caused a serious challenge to the

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PPP government in Centre and emerged as a major contender for political power. Its

campaign resulted into the dissolution of the PPP government and the arrangement of

new elections in 1990. By the time the PML had learnt its lessons and organized the IJI

more seriously. This time it worked for seat adjustment not only within the IJI but also

with other like minded parties out of the alliance to ensure a maximum consolidation of

the anti-PPP vote. Resultantly, the IJI won maximum number of seats not only in Punjab

but also in the Centre. The PML having a leading role in the IJI got its Punjab chief

Nawaz Sharif elected as Prime Minister. Having swept polls in Punjab with 211 out of

240 seats in the Provincial Assembly, the IJI formed its government with an

overwhelming majority and elected Ghulam Hyder Wyne as Chief Minister of Punjab.

During Nawaz Sharif’s prime ministership, the intra-party differences in the PML

were again resurfaced. An open rift was however avoided in Junejo’s life which erupted

after his death in March 1993. The pro-Junejo Muslim Leaguers not only criticised

Nawaz’s style of governance but also opted to side with his opponents, causing big

damage to the party, which in turn culminated in to the dismissal of Nawaz government

on 18 April 1993. Following the dismissal of Nawaz government, the then Speaker of the

Punjab Assembly and a pro-Junejo Leaguer, Manzoor Ahmad Wattoo managed to oust

the Chief Minister of Punjab Ghulam Hyder Wyne and assume the office on 25 may

1993. The situation was nevertheless averted when the Supreme Court of Pakistan

restored the Nawaz government on 26 May 1993. He however, felt that he could not run

the central government in face of a hostile government in Punjab. This polarization

between the centre and Punjab was basically a reflection of division in the PML which

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culminated into dissolution of the federal as well as all the provincial assemblies.

The next elections were announced to be held in October 1993. Both the factions

of the PML namely the PML (N) and the PML (J) appeared in the 1993 elections with

their own independent identities. The PML (J) basically the rump of the united PML after

Nawaz and his associates blemished to form their own faction. In spite of its dwindling

ranks, the PML (Junejo) played a significant role during the crises which eventually led

to the elections in the country. The party’s image as the president’s partner in the power

wrangling between the President and the Prime Minister proved damaging for it in the

long run. As long as the political wrangling lasted between Lahore and Islamabad the

position of PML (J) was significant, but with the announcement of fresh elections the

party lost its value. While it decided to contest the election independently with a separate

election symbol, its stature was marginalised to Punjab that too dependent on the support

of the PPP.

The PML (J) had a long list of veteran Leaguers like Hamid Nasir Chatta as

President, Mian Manzoor Wattoo and Mir Balakh Sher Mazari as Vice-Presidents, Iqbal

Ahmad Khan as General Secretary and Sardar Asif Ahmad Ali and Chaudhary Abdul

Sattar as joint Secretaries. The other important members included Mir Afzal Khan,

Anwar Saifullah, Fizza Junejo, Brigadier Muhammad Asghar and Sardar Talib Nakai.

Abdul Ghafoor Hoti was also an aspirant of the office of the party President, but when

Mazari opposed the idea Hoti withdrew his support to the party. Secretary General of the

party announced that the party will try to implement the five point formula of

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Muhammad Khan Junejo as its agenda. Other points of the party manifesto included

normalising relations with India; concentrating on relations with the Islamic countries;

taking China as a corner stone of Pakistan’s foreign policy and developing good relations

with the USA, because of its importance at the global level.

The party had filled 37 members in the 1993 elections for the Provincial

Assembly of Punjab. They collectively got 850269 votes (5.88%), 18 members out of

them were able to win their seats. However, a number of independent candidates also

joined the party after which their number went up to 35. As an outcome of these elections

Mian Manzoor Ahmad Wattoo the provincial chief of the party was able to form the PML

(J) - PPP coalition government in Punjab and was re-elected as the Chief Minister of

Punjab on October 20, 1993. In spite of having only 35 seats in the assembly he was able

to get 131 votes against 105 polled by Shahbaz Sharif. This whole arrangement could be

possible because of the PPP which was determined to keep the PML (N) out of the reins

of power. Wattoo continued in the office of Chief Minister till September 12, 1995, when

he failed to obtain the vote of confidence and was eventually replaced by Sardar

Muhammad Arif Nakai of the same party on 13 September 1995. Mian Manzoor Ahmad

Wattoo had challenged his removal in the Lahore High Court. The Court reinstated him

back to the position of September 5. 1996, to the office of the Chief Minister by its orders

dated 3 November 1996. This restoration however proved to be very short lived, as the

same day, 85 members moved a resolution for a vote of no-confidence against Wattoo.

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On the other side central government of Benazir Bhuttoo was dismissed by the

President on 5 November 1996. Wattoo appealed before the Supreme Court for an

extension in obtaining a vote of confidence, which the Court extended from ten to

thirteen days. Now Wattoo was supposed to get the vote of confidence on 16 November,

the same date was fixed by the assembly for the vote of no-confidence also. But ninety

three members of the PML (N) tendered their resignation from the assembly on that very

date leaving Wattoo with no prospects to obtain vote of confidence. He ultimately had to

resign from the office of chief ministership on the pretext to pose no hurdle in the way of

the new elections for the same.

Table 5.7: PML (J’S) POSITION IN THE 1993 AND 1997 ELECTIONS IN PUNJAB

Year Party/

Alliance Candidates Votes %age Seats

P.A. Seats N.A.

1988 - - - - - -

1990 - - - - - -

1993 PML (J) 37 850269 5.88 18 06 1997 PML (J) 28 270275 2.20 2 -

SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan, Reports on the General Elections 1988, 1990, 1993, and 1997.

After a drop scene of the 1993 assemblies the fresh elections were

announced to be held on 3rd February 1997. The PML (J) fielded 28 candidates for the

Provincial Assembly of Punjab. It got 270275 votes (2.20 %) and only two seats in the

Punjab assembly, with no seat in the National Assembly of Punjab. This time the PML

(N) swept the polls securing 134 seats in the Provincial Assembly of Punjab and to the

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National Assembly 134. Thus the PML (J) was virtually wiped out of the political scene.

It later joined the Grand Democratic Alliance launched by Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan

for an overthrow of the Nawaz Sharif government and was ultimately Known as PML

(Chatta).

5.8 PAKISTAN MUSLIM LEAGUE (NAWAZ GROUP) PML (N)

The Pakistan Muslim League has survived a sheer number of divisions and splits since its

transformation from the All India Muslim League to the Pakistan Muslim League in

1947. The party played a key role in the creation of Pakistan. Therefore, it enjoyed a

single party status and was a natural heir to the State power at the time of independence.

The people had a great emotional attachment with the Muslim League, because its name

was synonymous with the freedom movement. This phenomenon had an impact on the

post-independence politics of the country.

A number of political parties which emerged on the political scene of the country

used the words of ‘Muslim’, ‘League’, or both ‘Muslim League’ collectively with their

names. Even the Muslim league itself was split or divided into different segments like:

the Jinnah Muslim League, the Awami Muslim League, the Qayyum Muslim League, the

Quaid-e-Azam Muslim League, the Conventional Muslim League, the Council Muslim

League, the Pakistan Muslim League (Functional), the Pakistan Muslim League (Fida),

the Pakistan Muslim League (Junejo), the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) etc. etc.

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The Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) is one of the most fascinating phenomena

ever produced by the politics of Pakistan. Unlike most of the political parties, which were

formed to participate in the elections the PML (N) was born inside the house elected on

non-party basis in 1985. Founder of the party Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif was

planted in politics by the late President General Ziaul Haq, appointing him Finance

Minister of the Punjab in 1981. Nawaz worked as minister till 1985, when the

government held party less elections to bring people of its own choice to the front. An

other General Ghulam Jilani Khan, the then Governor of Punjab, played a pivotal role in

electing Nawaz Sharif as the Chief Minister of the province. After taking the charge of

the Prime Minister of Pakistan in March 1985, Muhammad Khan Junejo promised the

nation that he would lift Martial Law and would restore the fundamental rights of the

citizens under the Constitution. He did carry out his promise in December 1985 and

revived his party in the name of Pakistan Muslim League, standing himself head of the

party at centre.

Nawaz Sharif was appointed chief of the party in Punjab. Running the

government of Punjab and the provincial organization of the party was a new experience

for him. The more he enjoyed it, the more concerned he was to get hold of the state of

affairs at the central stage. He stated to devise plans not only to surpass Junejo to become

Prime Minister rather to get hold of the party as its central president as well. In the mean

time differences between the president General Ziaul Haq and the Prime Minister

Muhammad Khan Junejo were widened and culminated into the dismissal of the Junejo’s

government on 29 May 1988. This paved the way for Nawaz Sharif to endear himself to

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the military rulers. In spite of being a provincial party head of the PML, he welcomed the

dismissal of his own party government at centre. Resultantly, he was rewarded the office

of the caretaker Chief Minister of Punjab.

In continuation of sacking his government, the establishment wanted to replace

Junejo with Nawaz Sharif as president of the PML. On 13 August 1988 a meeting of the

central leadership of the party was held at the Islamabad Hotel (now Holiday Inn) in this

regard. The supporters of Junejo and Nawaz collided with each other injuring many.

Most seriously damaged was the party. The supporters of Nawaz declared Fida

Muhammad Khan as their president and Nawaz himself became the secretary-general of

the party. After the death of Zia, Ghulam Ishaq Khan took charge as acting President of

Pakistan. He also continued the policy to strengthen Nawaz Sharif vis-à-vis Junejo.

In the 1988 elections both these factions of the party ─ were reunited under the

leadership of Muhammad Khan Junejo ─ to face the challenge of the PPP. The PML was

still feeling insecure before the PPP so entered into a nine- party alliance of IJI. The PML

had stuck to the five point programme of Muhammad Khan Junejo as the basis of the

election manifest of the party. The programme called for the establishment of a society

free from exploitation. The people were ensured a meaningful participation in the state

affairs. Other points of the programme included alleviation of poverty, equal sharing of

resources between the rich and the poor classes of the society and ending the political and

economic hegemony of feudal and capitalists over the destiny of the countries. At the

same time the PML had to content itself with the seven point declaration of the IJI.

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(Discussed under the heading of IJI) Nawaz Sharif being the provincial head of both the

IJI as well as the PML was the strongest figure in the alliance. That is why, after getting

108 seats in the Provincial Assembly of Punjab the IJI formed its government in the

province with Nawaz Sharif as its Chief Minister. The PML undoubtedly was the main

component of the IJI and was able to get 70 percent of tickets for its members for the

seats of the Provincial Assembly of Punjab. Eventually, it was able to get the same

proportion in the Provincial Cabinet of Punjab (The Punjab Parliamentarians, 2007:251-

254).

In the 1990 elections also the PML decided to contest elections under the

umbrella of the IJI, even with a more sound footing. This time the IJI made a clean sweep

in Punjab securing 214 out of 240 total seats of the Provincial Assembly of Punjab. The

IJI emerged as a majority party at the centre too. Mian Nawaz Sharif took the office of

the Prime Minister of Pakistan and Ghulam Haider Wyne of the same party was elected

Chief Minister of Punjab. The whole Provincial Cabinet was also dominated by the PML.

(Ibid, 2007:269-273)

By the elections of 1993, the PML lead by Nawaz Sharif had emerged as an

independent entity with the name of PML (N) to counter the PPP, all alone. It indeed

was the latest avatar of the PML at that time. PML (N) was emerged on the day after

Ghulam Ishaq Khan had dismissed Nawaz government on 18 April 1993.

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This new faction of the PML was carved out of the united Muslim League

founded by Muhammad Khan Junejo. Secretary General of the party Sartaj Aziz declared

in his debate at the party symbol allotting session of the Election Commission that the

PML (N) was the successor of the convention Muslim League and the PML Junejo then

headed by Hamid Nasir Chatta that of Council Muslim League. He perhaps had forgotten

that the Convention League had always been looked down upon as the production of a

military rule, whereas, the genuine entity was the Council Muslim League which had

supported Miss Fatima Jinnah ─ the sister of Quaid-e-Azam ─ in the presidential

elections against Ayub Khan. Nevertheless, apart from the party’s long history of splits

and divisions the present PML (N) was the first faction ever since 1970 that had

challenged the PPP in the electoral arena in its individual capacity. As a matter of fact if

there was any single political party other than the PPP in the 1993 elections, it was the

PML (N). The party issued a detailed election manifesto, worked out significant electoral

adjustments with other parties and ran a well organised campaign. The party pledged to

attract investment in power, petroleum, gas, telecommunication and shipping. It

announced to continue the economic reforms and development package of the Sharif

government. The party showed its commitment to amend the provisions of the

Constitutions that undercut supremacy of the parliament. Setting up sanctuary for the

women who were victims of violence and discrimination along with the formulation of a

national employment policy for the women was also committed. The party also

announced to expand the yellow cab scheme to take in the yellow bicycles and yellow

tractors. Finally, the party promised to develop a peaceful nuclear programme for energy

purposes with no role back on its progress. In the same connection it opposed unilateral

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curbs on the development of nuclear technology.

As for as the matter of party leadership is concerned the party had one important

advantage that its chief ─ Nawaz Sharif ─ had ample private resources at his disposal

which he openly exploited in the electoral competition. Secondly, like Nawaz Sharif

himself, who was specially selected and groomed by General Zia during his Martial Law

rule, most of the PML (N) members entered the conventional politics during the same

period. Since then it kept trying to disengage itself from religious extremism, and had

continuous efforts to project itself at least as a centralist, if not a social democratic party.

The upper echelon of the party comprised of leading industrialists or former bureaucrats.

It thus presented itself as a radical party distinct from the other conventional feudal-

dominated parties of the country. Having most of its senior leaders and decision makers

from the province of Punjab, it emerged primarily as a Punjab based party. However, in

an endeavour to water down its Punjabi pallor it had found some implausible allies in the

smaller provinces. The party made alliances and adjustments with ANP in NWFP, PMAP

and few Baloch nationalist groups in Baluchistan including some Sind nationalists were

accommodated by the party for this purpose. All these groups were once regarded by the

Punjab based parties as inherently anti Pakistan but were admitted by the PML (N) in

these elections. In Punjab Ejazul Haq, Sataj Aziz, Mushahid Hussain, Chaudhary Nisar

Ali Khan, Chaudhary Pervaiz Illahi, Chaudhary Shujaat Hussain, Raja Zafarul Haq, and

Ayaz Amir provided an enriched slot of Provincial Leadership to the party.

With this strength the party nominated 232 candidates against the 240

seats for the Provincial Assembly of Punjab in the 1993 elections. The party got a

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considerable percentage of 40.86 percent votes and pocketed 106 seats in the Punjab

assembly in addition to the 55 seats in the National Assembly from Punjab. It however

could form government neither in the province nor at the centre. Mian Manzoor Ahmad

Wattoo of PML (J) formed the government in Punjab with the collaboration of the PPP.

This unnatural alliance could not last much and Wattoo was removed from the office of

Chief Minister and was replaced by Arif Nakai. The assembly did not let this apolitical

arrangement come true. In the mean time the assembly itself was over. Although, the

PML (N) failed to win enough seats to form a government, its performance however was

remarkable in the 1993 elections.

Table 5.8: PML (N’S) POSITION IN THE 1993 AND 1997 ELECTIONS IN PUNJAB

Year Party/

Alliance Candidates Votes %age Seats

P.A. Seats N.A.

1988 - - - - - -

1990 - - - - - -

1993 PML (N) 232 5910804 40.86 106 55

1997 PML (N) 235 6638907 54.19 212 109

SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan, Reports on the General Elections 1988, 1990, 1993, and 1997.

It not only emerged as the party of the future by sweeping the urban centres,

rather it also pocketed more votes than any other party including even the PPP. It thus

succeeded to grow in stature and was able enough to build a specific identity of its own.

Information secretary of the party, Syed Mushahid Hussain commented that “the Muslim

Leagues of the past were confined to drawing rooms and they relied almost entirely on

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establishment support for their survival but the last time the Muslim League became a

mass political force as was during the freedom movement under the leadership of the

Quaid-e-Azam”. This time the party emerged with a clear urban look. Though some of

the agriculturalists and other members of the ruling elite were also included in the party

but it was mainly comprising of the industrialists and businessmen and was winning a

wider support of the middle classes day by day. The last three years of the PPP

government were the real test of the party, when it was not only forced to stay out of the

corridors of power rather many of its members were even persecuted and jailed too. In

such a state of affairs almost whole leadership of the party remained intact to face the

wind, which in turn firmed the organisational structure of the party. The PML (N) learned

a lot from this experience in the light of which it outlined a number of proposals aimed at

introducing constitutional and electoral reforms, such as:

Ensuring the supremacy of parliament by restricting the passing of ordinance;

Banning of floor crossing and horse trading in the assembly;

Increasing the number of general, women, minority and professional seats in the

National and Provincial Assemblies;

Limiting the number of ministers and advisors;

Reforms in the functioning of law enforcing agencies;

Provision of health and education along with justice;

A vigilant accountability process;

Development of economy with the modernisation of agricultural, industrial,

energy and banking sectors, with an expanded network of highways and

motorways was also an integral part of the manifesto.

With such a highly ambitious plan the party was able to nominate a highest

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number of 235 candidates in Punjab in the 1997 elections. The party collectively

demonstrated an excellent example of political participation by winning the highest ever

number of 6638907 votes with 54.19 percent of the total turn out. It bagged 212 seats in

the Provincial Assembly of the province and 109 out of 115 seats on the National

Assembly in Punjab. This growing strength made PML (N) the biggest party not only of

the province but at the centre as well. On the other side, however this very high level of

participation proved harmful for the party. It could not manage with the upcoming

circumstances, when its government was toppled on 12 October 1999 and the party was

torn in to pieces again.

5.9 PAKISTAN PEOPLES PARTY (PPP)

After resigning from the cabinet of Ayub Khan in 1966, Zulifqar Ali Bhutto launched a

new political party named Pakistan Peoples Party at its inaugural convention held in

Lahore on November 30 – December 1, 1967. He was elected as its Chairman in the same

convention. Its manifesto pithily summarized in three catchy slogans, “Islam is our faith;

democracy is our polity; socialism is our economy”, emphasized the need to improve lot

of the poor by restructuring the current “colonial” and “capitalistic” system through a

socialistic programme. Among the main goals expressed for which the party was formed

included formulation of a new constitution by a new assembly, nationalisation of basic

industries, banks and insurance companies, reforms to develop the conditions of the poor

classes, a non-aligned foreign policy, withdrawal from the defense pacts of SEATO and

CENTO, solidarity with Afro-Asian and Latin American Countries, particularly the

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Muslim ones, disassociation from the Tashkent Declaration, and a bi-lateral settlement of

the Kashmir and other disputes with India. (Afzal, 1998:186-192)

The Pakistan Peoples Party is the only political organization in the country which

has either challenged incumbent governments for the reins of state power or been in

control of government itself. While laying the foundation of the party even the party, the

party leaders could not have expected that it will come to occupy the centre of the

political stage in Pakistan very soon. Since its inception, the party has adopted a

controversial character, attracting equal measures of admiration and criticism in the

process. With its clearly populist path, the party has been able to forge a close and

powerful bond with its electorate. Having a wide ranging electoral support the PPP could

muster for its populist programme and was able to sweep to power in the 1970 elections.

This victory was followed by the East Pakistan debacle, which led to the assumption of

power by the PPP in the remaining Pakistan. Zulifqar Ali Bhutto thus, inherited

subsequent to that the disintegration of the country.

After a rule of six years, a military coup led to the removal of the PPP

government in 1977. The party was charged with a large scale rigging in the 1977

elections. The founder of the party Zulifqar Ali Bhutto was hanged to death by Zia

government on April 4 1979, in a murder charge of Nawab Ahmad Khan Kasoori. The

party later on was hired by his daughter and successor Benazir Bhutto. Being a political

activist with the PPP, she was repeatedly imprisoned and kept under house arrest by Zia

government from 1977 to 1984 and was put to political exile to London from 1984 to

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1986.

The return of Benazir Bhutto, the daughter of Zulifqar Ali Bhutto inaugurated a

new chapter in the history of the party. “We believe in the politics of commitment not of

revenge”, she declared to large crowds. The old leadership of the party including Ghulam

Mustafa Jatoi, Ghulam Mustafa Khar, and Mumtaz Bhutto withdrew their support to the

party with the perception that after the death of Zulifqar Ali Bhutto the party was

finished. Late in 1986, Benazir Bhutto proved them wrong. When she launched her

election campaign in 1988, the party left-wingers attacked her decisions to deviate from

socialism and to end the class based politics. Similarly, the party’s about turn in its policy

regarding the US was also not welcomed by them. Modest bystanders however, assumed

that her pragmatic politics, corded with the conformist rhetoric of the old PPP, may well

have hurt the more committed ones but had managed to keep the massive vote bank alive

and attached. The new image of the party owed a great deal in delicate political balancing

that Benazir was able to pull back. By wooing those outside the ranks of party diehards,

Benazir, indeed had tried to create a base from which she can mobilize support. The main

party leadership thus included Begam Nusrat Bhutto, Benazir Bhutto, Makhdum Talib-ul-

Maula, and his two offspring Amin Faheem and Khaliquzzaman, Prof. N. D. Khan, Syed

Zafar Ali Shah, Qaim Ali Shah, Qazi Abid. The main party leadership from the Punjab

was including Shaikh Rasheed, Farooq Laghari, Jahangir Badar, Rana Shaukat

Mahmood, Faisal Saleh Hayat, Shaikh Rafiq, Gen. (Retd.) Tika Khan, and Malik Meraj

Khalid. (The Dawn)

199

The party manifesto for the 1988 elections pledged to fabricate a new order that

would lead the country into the 21st century as a “developed nation, free of exploitation,

poverty and justice”. The salient features of the manifesto include a pledge to revoke all

discriminatory laws against women and the minorities. : Freedom of artistic expressions;

the distribution of government land among the landless peasants but no further

nationalization. It reflected a new look of the party as “social democratic” in the

European sense. (Herald, Special 1988 elections)

The PPP, through out the eight years of Zia rule, had been the mainstay of the

MRD. During the 1988 elections however, the party had unilaterally parted its way from

the MRD, but at the same time had decided one-sidedly not to nominate candidates

against the leaders of the MRD. But this dispensation infuriated most of its allies, who

started harbouring a sense of grievance against the party. Without taking all these

grievances seriously the party’s main leader Benazir Bhutto marched relentlessly towards

a grim electoral contest with the forces arrayed against her, mainly the industrial tycoons

from Punjab.

In the 1988 elections the PPP nominated 238 candidates against the 240 general

seats of the Provincial Assembly of Punjab who polled 34.17 percent (4380427) of the

total votes polled and were able to secure 97 seats in the assembly. Thus the party

emerged as the second largest party in the province. It also secured 53 out of 115 seats of

Punjab in the National Assembly of Pakistan against the 45 seats of its main rival i.e. IJI

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in these elections and emerged as the main party at the national level. So, it formed the

government at centre, while the Punjab government was held by the IJI, which gave very

tough time to the central government of the PPP.

With the dismissal of the PPP government on 6 August 1990 the new elections

were announced to be held on 24 October 1990. Benazir Bhutto again mustered up the

party to contest these elections with full vigour. Structure of the party was not much

different than that of the previous elections. The central leadership was commonly shared

by widow of Z. A. Bhutto, Begum Nusrat Bhutto and her daughter Benazir Bhutto as the

Bhutto name continued to remain synonymous with the PPP. Sheikh Tariq was the

secretary general of the party, Professor N. D. Khan the deputy secretary general and

Qayyum Nizami the information secretary. The main leadership in Punjab however

included Sheikh Rashid Ahmad, Farooq leghari, Khawaja Tariq Rahim, Saeed Awan,

Aitzaz Ahsan, Mairaj Khalid and Jehangir Badar. The most significant change in the

party’s political strategy had been to enter into an electoral alliance with other three

political parties ─ but the arrow remained the election symbol of the alliance. Other three

parties included in the alliance named as the PDA were PML (Q). TNFJ, and TI.

The PPP decided to contest these elections from the platform of the PDA instead

of its own name had several implications. First, that Benazir Bhutto did not want to make

her party the sole target of a frontal attack by its opponents. Second, that she had realized

the importance of having allies. Third, that she was feeling it difficult to compete with

her opponent alliance of IJI all alone. Eventually, the PPP had not only spared some seats

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for its allies and for some other parties with which it made separate arrangements, rather

it had also to made certain amendments in the joint manifesto of the alliance. The PDA

thus jointly nominated 231 candidates for the Provincial Assembly of Punjab, who could

poll only 29. 20 percent of the total votes cast with an insignificant number of merely ten

seats in the Punjab assembly. Similarly, in the National Assembly seats for Punjab the

PDA could pocket not more than 14 seats. The general vote bank of the party was

however not declined more than 4.97 percent (34.17- 29.20 = 4.97) than the elections of

1988. In number the same difference counts 386236 votes (4380427 – 3994191=

386236). See Table 5.9. Such a big difference of seats with a meagre difference of votes

puts a question mark on the credibility of the elections. With these results the PPP was to

play the role of opposing both at centre as well as in Punjab. These assemblies could also

not complete their due tenure and were dissolved on 17 August 1993.

Table 5.9: PPP’s POSITION IN THE 1988, 1990, 1993 And 1997 ELECTIONS IN PUNJAB

Year Party/ Alliance

Candidates Votes %age Seats P.A.

Seats N.A.

1988 PPP 238 4380427 34.17 97 53

1990 PDA 231 3994191 29.20 10 14

1993 PPP 198 5018154 34.69 94 47

1997 PPP 191 2484026 20.28 3 -

SOURCE: Election Commission of Pakistan, Reports on the General Elections 1988, 1990, 1993, and 1997.

The next General Elections were scheduled to be held on 6 October 1993 and the

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PPP was again back on the electoral front in its individual capacity. At this time party’s

two top leaders Begam Nusrat Bhutto and Benazir Bhutto were going off in different

directions on the issue of Murtaza Bhutto. Murtaza Bhutto the elder of the two sons of the

founder of the party, Z. A. Bhutto. He was contesting this election as an independent

candidate, whereas Nusrat Bhutto wanted him to be given share in the party which

Benazir Bhutto was not ready for. The PPP’s campaign in these elections was determined

by infighting and the dusk of Murtaza Bhutto was lingering over it to create further

uncertainty. The 1993 elections therefore mark a watershed in the history of the party as

this is the first time when another single party ─ the PML (N) ─ has dared to challenge

the PPP on its own. The PPP nevertheless was able to survive this phase under the

determination of the same leadership of the previous elections. It formulated an articulate

election manifesto to attract the voters. It planned to foster greater economic growth by

encouraging what it called “public-private partnership”. The manifesto announced to

develop a public-private partnership to build infrastructure such as schools and hospitals.

It also pledged to introduce the list system of proportional representation system.

Reintroduce women seats, introduction of joint electorate for minorities and reduction in

the voting age to eighteen years was also promised. The crucial matter of signing a treaty

of mutual arms reduction with India was also taken up. It further recommended for

complete devolution of power and authority down to the root level of the society by

setting up elected governments at the district level. The manifesto finally recommended

reducing the terms of the office of President, Prime Minister, National and Provincial

Assemblies, Governors and of the Local Bodies to four years. With these points in mind

the party came up with 198 candidates all over Punjab and was able to win 94 seats in the

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Provincial Assembly of Punjab with the help of 34.69 percent votes. It also succeeds in

getting 47 seats from Punjab in the National Assembly of the country. This time the party

got a highest number of 5018154 votes as compared to the previous elections. This

maximum level of political participation in the party resulted into the instability of the

party and it could not perform well in the subsequent elections of 1997.

In the 1997 elections the PPP nominated 191 contestants out of which only three

candidates could secure their seats. The overall vote bank of the party declined from

34.69 percent in the previous elections to merely 20.28 percent in these elections. There

might be other reasons as well but the researcher sees this sharp decline in the party’s

vote bank as a differentiation between the level of participation and the level of

institutionalization. As the participation exceeded the level the level of

institutionalization in the party, it led the party towards instability which in turn

culminated into an overall decline in the party along with its vote bank.

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FINDINGS AND CONCLUSION

The political parties depict social economic and political aspirations of the people they

belong to. Their commitments may be short term or long term depending on the

demands of the people or groups, particularly relating to the political participation of

society. Naturally, to fulfill the ambitions of people political parties try to grasp over the

power by achieving political strength i.e. to rule or to rule through an effective political

participation which does not allow or resist of ruling party if it deviates from its

manifesto or if there exists or arises any clash with the manifesto of the party not in

power. Such party systems may be categorized as single party system, two-party or bi-

party system or multi-party system. However, in some countries no party system is also

operating. Each system has its own merits and demerits.

The development of political parties can be traced back to the introduction of

behavioural revolution. People started thinking about their social rights which led to the

political consciousness. This awareness initiated theoretical rigor and empirical research

regarding the concept of political parties, their structure, functions and parameters. The

political school of thought emerged as a result of creative scientific thinking of

sociologists. The approaches like system function approach, social process approach and

comparative history approach opened new vistas of knowledge for the study of political

development. The economic factors were the major contributory parameters behind most

of the political development either in developed countries or developing countries. Thus

205

political developments were on the legacy of developed countries and the developing

countries had followed the same track at the most. However due to the environmental

factors different patterns are followed in different countries.

Nevertheless, the political development is a continuous process according to

situation and environmental influences taking place locally, nationally or internationally.

Political development is a reconstruction or modernization through politicization and

active participation of citizens in state affairs for overall well being of the society or to

create awareness in masses for elaboration of political institutions capable of responding

according to ambitions of the society inline with prevailing conception. The political

development thus helps growth of political institutions, political practices and finally the

political systems.

To institutionalize political development adaptability, complexity, autonomy and

coherence of functions and procedure are to be followed to measure the role of political

parties’ development in political development in Punjab. The researchers who have

analysed these phenomena adopted various measures or approaches and may be called

various schools of thoughts. These approaches included elitist approach, Marxian

approach and praetorian approach.

These approaches are categorically applicable in case of political development

and role of political parties in Pakistan. The elite approaches discuss the involvement of

elite class in political, economic and social life of the citizens and their influence and

impact on the development of political parties. In Pakistan after independence the

206

resources were in the hands of civil and military bureaucracy from 1947 to 1951. The

impact of civil and military bureaucracy prolonged from 1951 to 1958 and it did not

allow flourishing political institutions. The provincial autonomy was hardly to

understand by the politicians. This ambiguous situation was more disturbing for the

politicians of West Pakistan, whereas the Punjab and Sind in East Pakistan were mostly

under the influence of political feuds; these were the major reasons hindering the proper

functioning of political parties. The absence of organized political institutions and

political powers created unrest among the people which created nationalist elements.

This nationalization gave birth to regional political activists like Punjabi –Bengali

political tussle. The regional factional and prejudiced political forces were engaged with

bureaucracy in political bargaining with the change of political culture, the political

norms also changed and the political development in Pakistan became a complex state of

affairs in the hands of military, bureaucracy and elites. This state of affairs prevailed

throughout the country including Punjab. Political parties being the most important

institution of political mobilization in mass politics of Punjab exhibited wide variety of

political development and providing direction for functioning and ideological survival of

the parties. The researcher tried to recapitulate this situation as revival of parliamentary

democracy with particular reference to Punjab. The research visualizes the ineffective

role of political institutions. He raises questions like, had the political parties been

playing their due role; they would have never spared the apolitical forces to take over.

With this premise the study addressed certain questions. That what was the due role of

political parties? Did the political parties play their due role, if yes, how much? Was

there any disparity in the conduct of political parties vis-à-vis the apolitical forces, if

207

yes, what its nature was? Why the political parties failed to counter the apolitical forces

to preserve the sanctity of their political system in a way of their own?

The researcher discussed the political scenario in historical perspective of

Punjab. Punjab was conquered by British in 1848. From 1858 to 1911 the city of Delhi

new capital of India was also part of Punjab. The total area of British Punjab comprised

two thirteen of the whole of the British India. A Board of Administration was set up to

administratively look after the Punjab. The members of the Board were given wide

powers and unhampered control over civil, fiscal and judicial matters. In 1853 AD the

Board was abolished, which opened many administrative issues. In 1784 Act of India

became operatimed which Continued till 1858. The central government of India, the

provincial governments and local governments were working under the hierarchy of

British government controlled from London. The most vital amongst them was the

district which was independent practical unit working under the deputy commissioner.

Half of the persons in district management were taken from civilian and the rest from

military. The education system introduced by British was the first which provided break

through to create an elite class in Punjab, by the changes brought in Indian legislative

Council through Indian council Act 1892 the election were introduced. The reforms

introduced by Provincial Legislative Council and related bodies granted communal

representative to Muslims. This change was a step to the political development of the

area.

The new scheme of the Government of India Act was introduced after the First

World War 1914-18. The structural and functional changes were enacted. These reforms

208

also enlarged functions of the legislature. Under this Act, functions of legislatures were

classified as ‘Central’ and ‘Provincial’ subjects. The provincial subjects were, in turn,

divided into ‘reserved’ and ‘transferred’, to be dealt with by the Governor in Council

and the Governor acting with a Minister or Ministers, respectively. Thus, the Act of

1919 introduced diarchy in the provinces which, however, in the process of its

implementation, was found to be both unsatisfactory and unworkable.

The same system remained in action until the Government of India Act 1935.

The Act gave a unicameral legislature to Punjab, although with a changed designation.

The Punjab Legislative Council was styled now as the Punjab Legislative Assembly. Its

strength was increased to 175 elected members. The same system remained in action

until replacement of the British government with the Government of Pakistan in 1947.

These conditions were the main reasons which did not allow any reasonable political

development. Obviously, the researcher discussed the political development and the

working of political parties in three eras under the influence of British Government from

1849 to 1947 and post British period from 1947 to 1988 and then from 1988 onward.

There were 63 political parties present in the province of Punjab during British

period in Punjab comprising Muslim, Sikhs and the Hindus with the subsequent

proportions. Such parties were mainly established in the first and second decade of the

twentieth century. It may be due to the strict check of the British government on such

activist activities in India or due to the British-Sikh animosity or obstinacy since the end

of Sikh rule in Punjab by the British. The very first movement for establishment of

political parties was the Kuka Movement in 1850 which later on served as a nursery to

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number of political parties established by Sikhs. In 1941 and 1945 parties in Punjab

were established as communal Muslim Parties like the Jamat-e-Islami, the Majlis-e-

Itehad-e-Millat, and the Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam. The Punjab Muslim League Assembly

Party came into existence in 1937, which was formed with the collaboration of M. A.

Jinnah and Sikandar Hayat and was functional only with in legislature having no

structure of it out of the Punjab Legislative Assembly.

The communal elements played a central part in the politics of Punjab through

out the whole British period. It could be possible for the central parties of Muslim

League and Congress to develop their vote bank in Punjab only after the introduction of

1935 Act, that too with the support of local parties.

The post independence electoral and political history of Pakistan has

categorically been a chequered one. After independence a general election, by direct

voting was held for the provincial Legislature of Punjab in 1951, on the basis of

universal adult suffrage, which was conceded by the government, in view of the growing

political consciousness of the people. The parties present in these elections were as

follows:

Pakistan Muslim League (PML), Jamat-e-Islami (JI), Azad Pakistan Party (APP),

Jinnah Awami League (JAL), [i. Awami League, ii. Jinnah Muslim League], The

Communist Party of Pakistan (CPP)

The elections resulted in a clear victory for Muslim League. Main

opposition to the Muslim League in these elections came from the camp of the Jinnah

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Awami League, which was an outcome of a two-party alliance ─ the Awami league and

the Jinnah Muslim League. This was the first ever experience of election on the basis of

universal adult franchise in Punjab, and excluding local government elections it proved

to be the last until 1970 elections. This political development ended with the imposition

of Martial Law in 1958, when all parliamentary institutions were abolished, the National

and Provincial Governments dismissed, and the National and Provincial Assemblies

dissolved. The political parties were banned. The Chief Martial Law administrator,

Ayub Khan had promised to restore political process, but it was to be with a difference.

This was envisaged in the scheme of ‘Basic Democracies’ which was announced in May

1959. The scheme opt a status quo strategy to hold non-party local government elections

rather than party based national and provincial assemblies’ elections.

The first round of ‘Basic Democracy’ elections for eighty thousand ‘Basic

Democrats’ was held in 1959. The second step of Ayub’s status quo strategy was to use

these Basic Democrats as an electoral college for the election of President, the members

of National Assembly, and the members of East and West Pakistan Assemblies. Through

this indirect electoral system Ayub Khan was elected as President of Pakistan in

February 1960. It was followed by the Constitution of 1962. Ayub’s strong hold on

government was shaken with the campaign of opposition parties under the leadership of

Miss Fatima Jinnah when opposition congregated 36 percent of the votes of the Electoral

College. The polls for the National Assembly and the Provincial Assemblies were held

on 21st March, 1965 and 16th May 1965, respectively. These were also party based

elections, but were contested between the two main forces i.e. pro-government and anti

government the Convention Muslim League and the Combined Opposition Parties

211

(COP), respectively. These election results ensured that elections without participation

did not lead to political change which resulted in political changes being brought about

by political participation in streets rather than participation in the electoral process.

Owing to a long anti Ayub agitation, he had to resign, abrogate his own presidential

constitution and hand over powers to another military ruler, General Yahya Khan on 25th

of March 1969. This change over of personalities proved to be the conversion of

political and electoral systems from presidential to parliamentary and from indirect to

direct elections, respectively. In this way Pakistan finally succeeded in holding its first

general elections on the basis of direct universal franchise in 1970. The 1970 elections

changed the nature of electoral politics in the country. This change made these elections

based upon mass politics rather than elite politics, upon parties rather than upon

individuals and played upon national rather than local issues. The newly established

Pakistan People’s Party emerged as a majority party in Punjab. Some other interesting

trends may also be traced. A radical change in the voting behaviour is clearly visible.

The People voted for parties instead of personalities or baradries. These elections also

proved that the people are mature enough to participate in the democratic process,

thereby rebutting the Ayubian maxim that democracy is not suited to the particular

genius of Pakistan.

In an environment of free political activity a high level of political

participation of various political parties, the contesting candidates and of the general

public with a voter turn out of about 60 percent votes polled, with a lower level of

political institutionalisation culminated into the political instability which in turn

resulted into the disintegration of Pakistan in December 1971. Subsequently, the then

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Army Chief and the President of Pakistan had to hand over the powers to Zulifqar Ali

Bhutto the leader of majority party in West Pakistan on 20 December 1971. The

Constitution of Pakistan 1973 was primarily of federal and parliamentary nature,

providing for bi-cameral legislature at the centre, for the first time in the history of

Pakistan. The next general elections were to be held before 14 August 1977, on the

basis of universal adult franchise under this constitution.

The PPP captured 108 out of 116 constituencies (including one in the Federal

Capital Territory) with just 61% of the total vote. These elections, indeed, failed to

indicate a clear victory for democratic or progressive causes. At the same time as, the

campaign stirred an unexpectedly high level of voter interest and political participation.

These elections set off political instability and disparagement rather than to help

establishing political accountability and trust in the country’s politics. The opposition

parties deplored the polls as engineered and repudiated their seats in the National

Assembly or to go for succeeding Provincial Assembly elections.

An overview of the political scenario of the post independence period in Punjab

shows that in total four elections were held during the period from 1947 to 1977. Three

of them i.e. 1951, 1970 and 1977 were held directly on the basis of universal adult

franchise whereas the elections of 1965 were held indirectly through Basic Democrats.

One common feature in all these elections was, however, that all of these four elections

were arranged on the party basis. Total number of political parties active in these

elections in Punjab was thirty three.

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There are three indexes i.e. members, voters, and parliamentary seats to measure

the standard of a political party. The present researcher has observed the same in the

case of working of political parties in Pakistan. The early analysis of electoral behaviour

in Punjab was generated by Ayub’s Basic Democracy elections. However the electoral

behaviour in Punjab was determined more by class than by traditional caste of kinship

ties. Moreover, voters who are economically dependent are also dependent upon their

masters concerning their political decisions, however economically independent people

may vote on the basis of kinship and caste. Pakistan was deemed normally a non-

election country, for a long time and the elections were held under different arbitrarily

imposed legal, constitutional and electoral systems.

The Constitution of 1973 continued parliamentary democracy and introduced a

bi-cameral legislature for the first time in the history of the country. The newly created

upper house i.e. Senate was to be elected indirectly under the Proportional

Representation system with single transferable vote (STV), of the members of respective

four provincial assemblies of Pakistan. Later Zia-ul-Haq, the then President of Pakistan

held the General Elections 1985 on non-party basis in violation of the prevalent

constitution. Such frequent shifts in constitutional and electoral system of the country

contributed further to the already prevailing scarcity in the scientific study of elections in

Pakistan. The repeated electoral malpractices have also discouraged potential analysts to

take up the venture of studying the phenomena of elections. Then, a domineering role of

military generals with their coups and prolonged rule did not let built the country’s

image as an electoral democracy.

214

The first phase covering both pre-Ayub period and the Ayub era, reflects the

practice of marginalization of the representative institutions and keeping the decision

making process under a strict check of the State. So the real power through out this

period was originated from constitutional arrangements overlooking the mass mandate.

The second phase shows a shift in the electoral tradition from the legitimacy syndrome

to participatory function of elections. The election campaign for the General Elections

1977 kept this momentum alive with an excessive participation of all the political parties

but it was taken over by a controversy regarding rigging in the polls.

The 1988 elections stood for the restitution of party politics and ultimately

provided legitimacy to the prevalent structure in the country. After the removal of PPP

government in Centre and the IJI government in Punjab, the President Ghulam Ishaq

Khan battered the powers of the State to appoint the partisan caretaker cabinets at the

federal as well as provincial level. All the nominees of the caretaker setup at both the

levels mainly from opposition and were well known for their open hostility to the

Pakistan Peoples Party. Such caretakers had the backing of the establishment and of the

President to make it sure that the PPP would not return to power and the favorites of the

President would get power at all the levels.

In the result of 1990 General Elections only three parties could secure seats in

the Provincial Assembly and four parties in the National Assembly seats of Punjab. IJI

pocketed big share with 214 seats (89.1%) through 55.13 percent of the total valid votes

polled for the Provincial Assembly. Blueprint of the National Assembly seats for Punjab

215

was also not so different. Having such a sweeping victory in Punjab the IJI had no

challenge at all to form the government with an overwhelming majority.

A comfortable position of the IJI led to the general belief that at last political

stability had been restored in the province and this party would remain saddled in power

till completion of the normal term of the assembly as envisaged under the Constitution.

The PDA, however did not accept the results and repeatedly alleged at the instance of

the President Ishaq Khan and that the IJI, therefore had no right to rule. Still it decided to

sit in the opposition to fight.

In the General election of 1993 a large number of 49 parties participated in the

election. Out of these there were only four parties which participated in all the three

consecutive elections with the same nomenclature in their individual capacity, without

becoming a part of any alliance. The 86.45 percent of the votes were cast in favour of

the party candidates, showing a general support for the party candidates, but still such a

big vote of the independent candidates shows an influence of individuals on the politics

of Punjab. The 83.33 percent (106+94=200) of the total 240 seats of the Provincial

Assembly of Punjab were won mainly by the two parties i.e. PML (N) and PPP,

respectively. Similarly 88.69 percent (55+47=102) of the total 115 seats of National

Assembly for Punjab were won by these very two parties. This demonstrates that a bi-

party system was emerging as a positive sign in the political development in Punjab.

Another interesting feature is that the proportion of the seats is higher when compared to

the proportion of the votes polled in favour of most of the parties as compared to the

independent candidates and the smaller parties.

216

Owing to these election results, the episode of the formation of

government was little complex and more astonishing. As in spite of being a majority

party the PML (N) could not get elect its Chief Minister. Rather the third majority party

PML (J) availed the opportunity to maneuver the situation in its favour by making a deal

with the second majority party i.e. PPP.

This uneasy coalition however continued for nearly two years by which time PPP

members had become fed up of Wattoo arrogant and autocratic style of governance.

Ultimately, Benazir Bhutto gave in and preparations were made to remove Wattoo. With

his all efforts to remain in the position of chief minister Wattoo could not survive and

ultimately office on November 17, 1996. In this way, this assembly could also not

complete its tenure of five years and was dissolved by the Governor on the same day.

The political parties participating in the General Elections1997 were as high as

64 in total ─ the highest counting in all the four subsequent elections. Out of these sixty

four parties there were thirty four parties participating in any of these elections for the

first time.

The participation of political parties in elections shows that in total 110 different

political parties and alliances participated in the electoral politics during the period

under study. A large number of 76 parties could participate only in one of these elections

in their individual capacity. Twenty seven parties participated in any of the two

elections. Eleven parties participated in three elections. Only two parties which

participated in all the four elections at the national level were the National Awami Party

217

and the Pakistan Muslim League (Qaiyum Group). In the case of Punjab there was only

one party i.e. Pakistan Muslim League (Qaiyum Group) which participated in all the

four elections in Punjab.

The General Elections 1997, resulted in one party rule with absolute majority in

the province, and ended any chance for the independent candidates to influence the

government and the political system in their own personal interests. These results show

that the PML (N) had completely swept the elections and had no opposition left worth

name left in the province.

The PPP was totally out of the political game having no influence in the

assembly. This time there was no shifting or reshuffle in any of the office of the

assembly and all the office holders remained in their offices till topple of the

government. The assembly constituted under these elections summoned its first meeting

on February 18, 1997. Conducting 130 sittings over 16 sessions, the assembly availed an

active life of two years, seven months and twenty three days, whereby it passed thirty

nine Acts.

It was on October 12, 1999 that the army took control of the country. The

assemblies were placed under suspension and the Constitution was held abeyance

through the proclamation of Emergency. General Pervaiz Musharraf the then Chief of

Army Staff and Joint Chief of Staff Committee assumed the office of Chief Executive of

the country, on the same day. The assemblies were kept under suspension till June 20,

2001, when they ultimately were dissolved. The performance of the1990 and of the 1997

218

assemblies however was comparatively better. The reason being that during both these

terms there was a single party government with a consuming majority.

As the researcher feels it inevitable to mention the limitations of this study which

included dealing only with the majority community seats, second limitation of the study

was that it did not deal with the women seats also because they were filled through an

indirect election, third limitation was that the study has not analysed the election to

Senate seats, for their also being indirect election. Thus, only 116 seats allocated to

Punjab in the National Assembly and 240 Muslim seats in the Provincial Assembly of

Punjab lie in the domain of the present study, for the reason that they properly

participated in course of political development trough direct elections with a wider

political participation of the masses.

From the above discussion it is concluded that an institutionalized party system

seems to be a necessary condition for the consolidation of political development. In

Punjab this phenomenon existed but the survival of most the parties could not be

materialized due to their basic institutional structure. The alliances and coalition are the

signs of distribution of patronage and functionalism within the parties. Apart from that

the decentralization in party organization is important. Basic and a firm footing at grass

roots and effective two way communication between the basic political units and central

command help in confidence building and strengthening of the political parties.

229

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