MQM-P’s Kamran Tessori appointed governor Sindh

F.P. Report

KARACHI: President Arif Alvi on Sunday approved the appointment of MQM-P’s Kamran Khan Tessori as the new governor of Sindh.

The position was vacant since Imran Ismail resigned before Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif became the premier in April.

The president has given this approval under Article 101(1) of the Constitution.

Last month, former coordination committee leader Tessori — who had been earlier blamed for creating a divide within the party that led to the expulsion of seasoned politician Dr Farooq Sattar from the party fold — returned to MQM-P ranks.

A gold trader and former PML-F leader, Tessori had joined MQM in 2017 and risen to prominence soon after. In December that year, he quit the party citing disagreements with its leadership.

The party — which had split into MQM-Pakistan and MQM-London following founder Altaf Hussain’s incendiary speech on Aug 22, 2016 — was further divided into MQM-Bahadurabad and MQM-PIB over the issue of giving a party ticket to businessman-turned-politician Kamran Tessori, then a deputy convener and favourite of Dr Sattar, to contest Senate elections in March 2018.

Due to the disagreement, Dr Sattar parted ways with the Bahadurabad faction and formed his own group — MQM-PIB.

Three of the four candidates of the MQM-P on Senate seats, lost the election including Tessori. Later, both factions united and contested the July 2018 general elections from one platform.

However, the party secured only four of the 21 National Assembly seats in Karachi. In the following months, differences over Tessori again led to the ouster of Dr Sattar from MQM-Bahadurabad.

During the past four years, multiple attempts had been made to woo Dr Sattar — who has been leading his own Organisation Restoration Committee of MQM since late 2018 — into the fold of MQM-P. However, he kept on insisting that Tessori be giving the same designation he had before leaving the party.

Recently, a stage was set for Dr Sattar’s return to the MQM, but at the last minute he alleged that the MQM-P leadership was not serious about the issue.

Dr Sattar contested the last month’s by-election on NA-245 constituency as an independent candidate, but lost.

“Farooq Bhai was told in clear words that there’s no room for Kamran Tessori and he can return to the party as a worker. Even Farooq Bhai had agreed to it as far as my knowledge goes,” said an MQM-P leader.

Sources indicated that this was a classic example of the influence of certain quarters on political parties.