News Analysis |
Amid rising speculations of rifts between the Sharif family, daughter of ousted Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, Maryam Nawaz has dispelled the impression of a tiff with her first cousin, lawmaker Hamza Shahbaz.
Maryam, while visiting NA-120, the constituency won by her mother, Kulsoom Nawaz said that Hamza is like her younger brother. “God forbid if we have any differences. I have been hearing stories of disagreements within the Sharif family since 30 years but there is no truth in these reports,” she asserted categorically.
Proponents of this theory believe that the Younger Sharif has been knocking at the doors of Islamabad through his developmental work; the tightening noose around Nawaz could just be Shahbaz’s gain.
Maryam, who along with her husband, Capt. Safdar and father, Nawaz Sharif, was indicted last week for a graft reference pertaining to the Avenfield Flats said those who are gunning to drive a wedge between the Sharif family will be left in a huff. She said: “Those hoping for differences to erupt in the Sharif family will be disappointed.”
Read more: Real stakes in NA-120: Maryam Nawaz’s future in peril..?
Analysts have assessed that Maryam’s meteoric rise in the PML-N despite having no formal position has drawn the ire of Hamza. The son of CM Punjab, Shahbaz Sharif, Hamza was found missing in the NA-120 campaign. More importantly, Hamza distanced himself from the GT Road Rally of his uncle, Nawaz Sharif, much in contrast to the last time he hit GT Road in 2009 when Hamza drove Nawaz all the way up to Gujranwala.
Maryam’s visit to her uncle, Shahbaz Sharif’s house last week, was termed by analysts as a step towards mending fences between the two cousins. Hamza, much in-line with his father’s political philosophy has expressed his distaste for taking to confrontational politics. Pundits and watchers have identified this visible rift within the Sharif family.
While it is too early to predict the future of the PML-N, talks of a tussle are certainly making rounds. Some analysts point out to the ongoing turf war between the two brothers
While Nawaz and his daughter, Maryam are gearing up for a showdown with the so-called conspirators, Shahbaz and Hamza believe that an institutional clash is not in the interests of the party and the country. The indictment of the Sharif family has seemingly opened the floodgates; days after the federal minister, Riaz Pirzada implored upon Shahbaz Sharif to take over the party, a block of 40 MPAs of the Punjab Assembly expressed the same desire while taking exceptions to Nawaz’s style of leadership.
Read more: Maryam Nawaz and her army of trolls
Today, Pirzada tauntingly said that he has asked Sharif’s “obedient brother” to take over, not the 111 Brigade or Indira Gandhi for that matter. He said: “I have not asked Indira Gandhi to take over the party; neither have I asked the 111 Brigade to take over,” said Pirzada while adding: “If Shahbaz Sharif commands the 111 Brigade, I apologize for my statement.”
Nawaz and his daughter, Maryam are gearing up for a showdown with the so-called conspirators, Shahbaz and Hamza believe that an institutional clash is not in the interests of the party and the country.
While it is too early to predict the future of the PML-N, talks of a tussle are certainly making rounds. Some analysts point out to the ongoing turf war between the two brothers. Proponents of this theory believe that the Younger Sharif has been knocking at the doors of Islamabad through his developmental work; the tightening noose around Nawaz could just be Shahbaz’s gain.
Read more: Will meetings in Saudi Arabia help Nawaz?
However, some believe that with the Model Town and Hudaibya cases in the pipeline, Shahbaz’s rise up a notch will not be easy. Also, Nawaz will not succumb easily. Watchers are convinced that we are in for some interesting times in the days to come.”