Ahlul Bayt News Agency (ABNA.ir), The grand alliance of religious parties, Muttahida Majlis-e Amal (MMA), had won many parliamentary seats in the 2002 general elections and also formed government in the northwest Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa province. The party had been virtually dead since 2007. Talking to IRNA, Qazi Hussain Ahmad said that the topmost priority at the moment should be the restoration of Muttahida Majlis-e-Ammal (MMA) and not being part of the ruling coalition. MMA had also been part of the ruling coalition with Pakistan Muslim League (PML-Q) party in southwest Balochistan (2002-2007). It had over 70 seats in the former national parliament. The MMA comprised of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam or JUI Maulana Fazlur Rehman faction, Jamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan or JUP, Jamaat-e-Islami, Tehrik-e-Islami the pro-Iran Shia group formerly known as the Tehrik-e-Nafaz-e-Fiqah-e-Jafaria (TNFJ) and other groups, such as the Ahl-e-hadeeth jamaats of Pakistan have at times been members of the coalition. The MMA benefited immensely from two factors in the general elections of 2002: the sidelining of major political parties as well as anti-American sentiment in Pakistani border provinces because of the Afghan war in 2001. But the alliance collapsed ahead of the 2008 parliamentary elections as two major parties – Jamaat-e-Islami and Jamiat ulema-e-Islam (JUI-S) boycotted elections under then President Pervez Musharraf. JUI-F blamed JI for splitting the alliance whereas JI and other component parties of MMA alleged JUI-F chief for siding with pro US political forces in the country, which according to them, are hectically busy to safeguard the US interests in Pakistan and second to secure financial gains. Qazi Hussain Ahmad, added that Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Fazlur Rehman is pursuing an ambitious political agenda these days, as he attempts to woo the ex-components of the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) back into the conglomerate while firmly holding on to governmental power. “Maulana Fazlur Rehman is in government and we are in opposition how can we form a grand alliance”, said the religious leader. The particularly hard line taken by one of the MMA components, Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) is enough to ensure that Fazlur Rehman cannot ride both the boats any longer and he will have to quit the government in the Centre if he is to garner the support of his old allies. Qazi Hussain Ahmad, expressing his views said there is a need to set up a religious parties’ alliance on a larger scale to free the country from US influence and to protect our independence and sovereignty. He urged JUI-F to part ways with what he called pro-U.S. government under the Pakistan Peoples Party. JUI-F party has not yet decided to withdraw its ministers from the federal cabinet. On the other hand JUI-F leader Maulana Fazal-ur-Rehman says that his party has resolved some differences with the government after a team of the party met Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani. Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman has urged the need to regroup the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) by learning a lesson from the past mistakes.
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