Dissolving Punjab assembly has divided PML-Q: Chaudhry Shafay
The stubbornness of Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Parvez Elahi to publicly back former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s call to dissolve the provincial assembly has all but split the Elahi’s party in the province which could not only cost the Chaudhry brothers their provincial government but also cause great political damage.
This was suggested on Monday by Chaudhry Shafay Hussain, the scion of veteran politician and Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) chief Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain.
Chaudhry Shafay said that Elahi’s insistence to dissolve the assembly has caused deep fissures in their party, who occupy just 10 seats in the provincial assembly.
And despite meetings of the parliamentary party and public proclamations of unity, behind closed doors there was a completely different story.
Shafay said that two to three MPAs of the PML-Q were in contact with their side of the family and had expressed their reluctance over dissolving the assemblies.
This, he suggested, could have an impact on the upcoming vote of confidence which the provincial chief executive is due to take in coming weeks.
War on terror
With terrorism rearing its head again in the country, he said that this was a time when political families in the country should unite, and chalk out a strategy against the menace of terrorism.
He further revealed that chief of army staff (COAS) and the director general of the country’s premier intelligence services, Inter Services Intelligence (ISI), would ensure that the armed forces operate under the sphere of legal and constitutional frameworks.
Rather than squabbling over trivial things, he suggested that parliamentarians should seek a detailed briefing on the follow up to the war on terrorism and current situation in the country.
