Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Senator Yousaf Raza Gillani on Monday confirmed receiving show-cause notice by the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM). “The PPP has received PDM’s show-cause notice, but not yet replied,” Yousaf Raza Gillani said in his informal talk with the journalists after addressing in the Senate session.
He said until now, the PPP is part of the opposition alliance, PDM and will comment on the situation after PPP’s reply, he added.
Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Awami National Party (ANP) have been served show-cause notices over alleged violation of the Pakistan Democratic Movement’s (PDM) consensus decision and principles.
The notices were issued after approval from the PDM chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman.
PPP has been asked to explain within a week, its conduct of getting appointed its candidate, former PM Syed Yousuf Raza Gillani, as Leader of Opposition in Senate, by defying the consensus decision of component parties of the Opposition alliance.
As a show-cause notice to PPP has been issued, it is pertinent to mention here that PPP candidate Yousuf Raza Gilani was appointed as Opposition Leader in Senate earlier in the day after he along with the PPP leaders Rubina Khalid and Sherry Rehman had filed the application along with the signatures of a majority of the house members.
The Pakistan People’s Party claimed to gain the support of four independent senators, namely Senator, Ahmed Khan, Senator Kehda Babar, Senator Naseebullah Bazai and Senator Dilawar Khan.
On the other hand, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz had also claimed to have the support of 26 members for its candidate Azam Nazir Tarar was also backed by the PDM.
PPP to support PTI’s led electoral reforms
On the other hand, Federal Minister Fawad Chaudhry on Wednesday confirmed backdoor talks between the government and opposition after contact between Opposition Leader in Senate Yousuf Raza Gilani and National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser.
Fawad Chaudhry while confirming the backdoor talks said that they had approached key opposition leaders in a bid to include them in the consultative process. “The prime minister has asked the speaker to approach the opposition,” he said adding that they had made the approach towards them and now the masses would decide on it.
Earlier, NA Speaker Asad Qaiser reached out to Yousuf Raza Gilani as two of them discussed improving the state of affairs within the Parliament and electoral reforms. “It is the joint responsibility of all to maintain the sanctity and respect of the Parliament,” he said adding that they had to face the ongoing challenges beyond their party politics.
The National Assembly speaker said that electoral reforms were need of the hour and asked the opposition leaders to convey the names of their party leaders to be represented in the parliamentary body mulling over these reforms.
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Responding to it, Yousuf Raza Gilani assured that they would extend their cooperation for running the assembly affairs in a proper manner. “Naveed Qamar has been appointed focal person in this regard by Bilawal Bhutto,” he said adding that PPP would play its positive role for the electoral reforms as it is a much-needed initiative.
Can PPP and PML-N stay together?
Although the PDM was created with an apparent purpose to topple Prime Minister Imran Khan’s government, yet the main opposition parties i.e. PPP and PML-N now seem to victims of internal fights as a result of ruthless power politics.
The ruling party has persistently argued that this alliance of the opposition parties is “unnatural” and cannot sustain. PM’s Special Assistant Usman Dar said in a talk-show that the alliance is without any ideology and has no potential to threaten the government. “You will soon witness their internal fights,” he said.
Notably, PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Monday mocked PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz and said that “there is a family in Lahore who used to get selected in the past”. Bilawal Bhutto Zardari gave this statement while talking to the media after meeting with Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) chief Sirajul Haq in Lahore.
Similarly, sources and media reports said Zardari during the meeting asked Nawaz to return to Pakistan before the joint opposition could go with the nuclear option of resigning from the assemblies in order to mount pressure on the PTI-led government.
The crucial session of the PDM was held amid divisions within the alliance over the issue of submitting resignations from the assemblies at a time when its planned long march was just two weeks away.
Zardari, who like Nawaz addressed the meeting virtually, reportedly told the PML-N chief: “Mian sahab, we will hand over the resignations to you when you return home.”
Nawaz has been living in London since November 2019 after he was allowed to leave the country for medical treatment.
Zardari further said if Nawaz wanted the opposition parties to resign en masse, “then not only us, but everyone will have to go to jail”.
Read more: Why is Maryam Nawaz silent? Severe mental stress over plight of Sharif Family
Talking about this month’s hotly contested Senate elections, Zardari said the opposition parties had challenged the government in the polls but regretted that PML-N Senator-elect Ishaq Dar, who is living in the UK in self-exile, had not participated in the voting, according to reports.
“Nawaz Sharif sahib, return to the country along with Ishaq Dar; we will fight together,” the PPP leader was quoted as saying during the meeting.