Pakistan Muslim League (Z)

Pakistan Muslim League (Zia-ul-Haq Shaheed) (Urdu: (پاکستان مسلم لیگ (ض) is a far-right wing and pro-Islamism political party in Pakistan formed in 2002. It is one of the factions of the original Pakistan Muslim League, named after General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, Pakistan's military dictator from 1977 to 1988. It was founded by his son, Muhammad Ijaz-ul-Haq, in 2002 with an initial aim of bringing back the religious government previously in 1980s. With the general elections of 2002, the party won 0.3% of the popular vote and 1 out of 272 elected members, and merged with the Pervez Musharraf-endorsed Pakistan Muslim League (Q). It gained the federal religious affairs ministry under Ijaz-ul-Haq. After PML-Q was routed following the general elections of 2008, PML-Z separated from the larger Muslim League party in February 2010.

In March, PML-Zia successfully contested by-elections held in Bahawalnagar for Member of the Punjab Provincial Assembly, upsetting the Pakistan Peoples Party. During the floods of 2010, the party also came to attention for distributing relief goods worth millions of rupees in Southern Punjab. In July, it seemed PML-Zia and PML-Q would reunite following a meeting between Ijaz and Q-League chief Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, but in November, PML-Z instead 'assimilated' with other Muslim League factions in a loose alliance called Muttahida Muslim League, brokered by senior politicians Pir Pagara and Zafarullah Khan Jamali. On December 19, 2010, Muttahida Qaumi Movement chief Altaf Hussain made contact with Ijaz and both parties' leaders agreed to convene a round-table conference of political parties to cope with national challenges.

On October 9, 2011, PML-Zia became the only party to support the PML-N's threatening to dissolve the Punjab Assembly and pre-empt the PPP's expected victory in the 2012 Senate elections.

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