ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President and Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif Thursday said whoever arranged Nawaz’s recent controversial interview was the biggest enemy of Nawaz, sources said.
The chief minister made these remarks while chairing the party’s first parliamentary meeting, which was attended by Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi among over a hundred PML-N lawmakers.
The meeting was convened to deliberate selection of party candidates in Punjab for the upcoming general elections. Those aspiring for a PML-N ticket have been advised to submit their applications till May 25.
Well-informed sources said the lawmakers apprised Shehbaz Sharif of their reservations on Nawaz Sharif’s recent controversial statement on the Mumbai attacks with the apprehension that the party’s electioneering could be affected by it. The lawmakers also said the statement had intensified the clash between the state institutions.
They also expressed reservations over Nawaz Sharif’s recent presser against the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) chairman during which he demanded his resignation over an inquiry initiated against Nawaz for allegedly laundering money to India.
The lawmakers said that the matters pertaining to Khatm-e-Nabuwwat amendment and national security issues would not bode well for the party, according to sources.
The party president was quoted by sources as saying that he would talk to the PML-N supremo over the issue. The lawmakers also urged Shehbaz Sharif to take charge of party affairs, sources further said. They questioned if disgruntled leader Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan was still a member of the party to which he said that Nisar was a senior member and would always remain part of the party.
Addressing the lawmakers, Shehbaz Sharif said the PML-N had completed all promises it made to the people. He added that the party would take their achievements to the electorate during the upcoming general elections.
It might be mentioned here that PM Abbasi had chaired a similar meeting on Wednesday to take party lawmakers into confidence after the recent statement by the party’s supreme leader. PM Abbasi also issued party guidelines to ensure the presence of parliamentarians when the budget bill would be presented in the National Assembly. He also apprised them of a plan to table a constitutional amendment to merge the Federally Administered Tribal Areas with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Published in Daily Times, May 18th 2018.
