ISLAMABAD: With the gulf widening between the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), PPP President Asif Ali Zardari has directed party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari not to shoulder the PML-N’s anti-government protest agenda in the opposition alliance, the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM).
While the PML-N has decided to raise the statements of Bilawal with PDM President Maulana Fazlur Rehman.
Well-placed sources in the PPP informed Pakistan Today that the party would not allow the PML-N to hijack the PDM with its protest agenda, adding that the PPP will not be part of any protest politics.
However, the sources say that the PPP has decided not to part ways with the PDM and instead focus on preventing the PML-N and the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) from using the opposition alliance for their petty objectives.
Furthermore, after Bilawal’s visit to Mansura and meeting with the chief of Jamat-e-Islami (JI) Sirajul Haq, wherein both the opposition parties agreed on a national dialogue, the PPP chief has decided to play its role without taking an extreme political position against Prime Minister Imran Khan.
“The PPP will set a new course in politics. It will not be part of the PDM’s protest movement nor will it be subject to PDM’s decisions. Rather, the PPP will make its own decisions in future from the PDM’s platform,” the sources said.
It was also reported that the PPP will not join the protest agenda even after Maryam’s NAB appearance.
“The PPP will field its own candidate for the slot of leader of the opposition in the Senate elections. It would not allow Maryam Nawaz to bully all the parties in the opposition alliance,” a source said.
PML-N DECIDES TO TAKE UP BILAWAL STATEMENTS TO FAZL:
Meanwhile, the PML-N has decided to contact the PDM chief regarding the statements of Bilawal.
“We will not respond to the statements of Asif Ali Zardari and Bilawal Zardari. Our target is Imran Khan. We will not allow the opposition to be divided,” a source in the PML-N told Pakistan Today.
According to the source, a consultation meeting of the PML-N was held in the Punjab Assembly under the chairmanship of Punjab Opposition Leader Hamza Shehbaz.
Ahsan Iqbal, Javed Latif, Saad Rafique, Maryam Aurangzeb, Pervez Rashid and Ataullah Tarar attended the meeting.
“The meeting reviewed various proposals on Maryam Nawaz’s NAB appearance. The meeting also reviewed the statements of Bilawal Zardari. PML-N decided to contact Maulana Fazlur Rehman in this regard,” the source said.
The source also said that Hamza gave important instructions to the party leaders regarding the Daska by-election.
Hamza further said that corner meetings should be held at the level of the Union Council.
