A standoff between ex-Pakistan president Asif Ali Zardari and his former political aide on Tuesday rocked his party’s government in the southern Sindh province as police tried to arrest the PPP chief’s erstwhile confidant.
Heavy contingents of armed police tried to enter but had to withdraw from the farmhouse of Zulfiqar Mirza near Badin town after the former Sindh home minister made a fresh round of allegations against Zardari, co-chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP). Mirza, a controversial figure who was once considered very close to Zardari and enjoyed absolute power as home minister, recently returned home from exile and has alleged that the former president is a “mentally sick person” and a “sadist” and has amassed illicit wealth by using his power to threaten his opponents.