LAHORE - JUI-F and Jamaat-e-Islami are set to part ways with their respective coalition governments at the Centre and in KP on the occasion of an MMA meeting scheduled to be held on March 20 in Karachi.

In case a decision on the subject is not taken that day, a date will be set for the purpose, insiders told The Nation Thursday.

It is also learnt that the leaders of the religio-political parties that are part of Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) will also nominate the office bearers of the alliance the same day.

Contrary to some reports, the MMA will contest next general elections without making an alliance with any mainstream political party, said sources. The perception emerged after the Senate polls that it will enter into an election alliance with PML-N. Six senators of JUI-F and JI voted for the PML-N backed candidates on chairman and deputy chairman seats in the March 12 Senate polls.

“We are ready to quit ruling alliance with PTI in KP while JUI-F has agreed to announce a date to leave PML-N at the Centre. The announcement will be made at an MMA meeting in Karachi,” a senior JI leader said, seeking anonymity. Most probably, both the parties will announce a date to quit the governments. In that case, JI will part ways with PTI before the announced date to mount pressure on Maulana Fazlur Rehman to dissociate himself from the ruling PML-N alliance, he added.

A senior JUI-F leader said decisions will be made with mutual consultation on March 20 and his party will fulfil all commitments.

It is learnt that Prof Sajid Mir, the head of Markazi Jamiat Ahle Hadith, was not in favour of quitting government alliances and had proposed to continue work till the end of the present tenure whereas JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman wanted some delay in quitting the ruling alliance. Allama Sajid Naqvi, the head of Islami Tehreek, and JUP-Imam Noorani leadership are mounting pressure on JI and JUI-F to immediately part ways with the government alliances.

MMA was revived in November 2017 after a decade of its disbanding. The alliance consists of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl, JI, Jamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan-Imam Noorani, Islami Tehreek and Markazi Jamiat Ahle Hadith. These parties represent all Islamic schools of thought – Barevli, Deobandi, Shia and Ahle Hadith. The alliance, however, failed to nominate its office bearers even after four months of its revival due to multiple issues.

JI Information Secretary Qaisar Sharif described registration-related pending issues of some MMA parties with Election Commission of Pakistan as the main reason behind the delay in nomination of the alliance office bearers. But, he said, now their process has been completed, it is expected the office bearers of MMA will be announced on March 20. Qaisar, however, did not officially confirm JI will quit the KP government on March 20 or not.

JUP-Imam Noorani President Pir Ijaz Hashmi said both the parties must come out of the government alliances to activate MMA. Since the leaders of the alliance are supposed to point out evils of corruption and liberalism in their speeches, they are expected to quit alliances with secular parties, he said.

Pir Ijaz and JI’s Qaisar also ruled out differences within the member parties of MMA over nomination of office bearers. There were, however, reports that JI and JUP-Imam Noorani demanded secretary general’s post for their party men.

“We only want equal treatment with all the parties in MMA,” said Pir Ijaz Hashmi. Qaisar said JI was not lobbying for any post in MMA. It is almost agreed that Maulana Fazlur Rehman will be the head of the alliance while Prof Sajid Mir and Allama Sajid Naqvi will act as senior vice presidents. The MMA was founded in 2002 and dissolved in 2007 over differences between Jamaat-e-Islami and JUI-F on the issue of contesting general elections 2008. The body contested general elections 2002 in the Pervez Musharraf tenure and formed government in KP and Balochistan.