ISLAMABAD: The no-trust vote against the prime minister proposed by the opposition parties was a gamble and being used as a bargaining chip to secure an NRO-like deal from Imran Khan, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Sunday said.
In a tweet to respond to the proposed move, the foreign minister said MPs from the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and coalition parties will collectively defeat the attempt to evade financial accountability.
Announcement to present no confidence motion is an attempt at a bargaining chip for a fresh deal. @PTIofficial parliamentarians & our allies will collectively defeat their attempts to evade accountability. As PM @ImranKhanPTI has consistently stated, possibility of an NRO is zero
— Shah Mahmood Qureshi (@SMQureshiPTI) February 20, 2022
He said that Prime Minister Khan has always maintained the chances of him providing a safe passage to opposition leaders facing cases of mega corruption is zero.
His tweet came days after a Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader confirmed it was in touch with the disgruntled ruling group led by former PTI secretary general Jahangir Tareen to seek its support in ousting the government.
When asked whether PML-N was making efforts to woo the Tareen posse, the party’s vice president, Hamza Shehbaz, said: “We are in contact with everyone (including the group) as our sole target is removing Imran Khan.”
