Tag: PML-N

  • ‘Not answerable to Maryam or Nawaz’: Bilawal

    ‘Not answerable to Maryam or Nawaz’: Bilawal

    Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said on Wednesday that the PPP was not answerable to Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice-President Maryam Nawaz or PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif and that his perspective remained unchanged.

    Addressing a press conference in Badin, the PPP chairman acknowledged that he had torn the show-cause notice and there was no change in his point of view on the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM).

    “We are not answerable to Maryam or Mian Sahab. We are answerable to the PPP and the PPP’s workers and we think the real joy will be in doing politics together with the PPP’s workers,” says Bilawal.

    Bilawal said that Shehbaz Sharif was the leader of the opposition in the National Assembly and the PML-N president, thus the PPP would consider his opinion and statements to be official PML-N policy and conduct its politics according to that.

    “Instead of opposing the PPP, our friends in the opposition should target the government,” added Bilawal.

    In response to Prime Minister Imran Khan’s concerns about the worsening law and order situation in Sindh, Bilawal said that the law and order situation in Sindh has improved, a move that has been made possible with the help of police.

    “Sindh police have the full potential to restore peace in the province,” Bilawal said. “The interior minister [Sheikh Rasheed] is ready to give a lecture about another province but is not ready to protect journalists in Islamabad.”

    Bilawal also condemned the attack on Islamabad-based journalist Asad Toor a day ago and said that journalists in Sindh are also being targeted for speaking the truth.

    “We demand the highest level of investigation into the attack on journalists,” said Bilawal. 

  • PPP to attend Shehbaz Sharif’s dinner today

    PPP to attend Shehbaz Sharif’s dinner today

    The PPP has decided to attend a dinner being hosted by PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif for members of the opposition parties today (Monday).

    The PPP delegation will reportedly include Opposition leader in the Senate Yousaf Raza Gilani, Raja Pervez Ashraf and Sherry Rehman.

    PPP leader Nayyar Hussain Bukhari said that this was an invitation for opposition leaders and not of the Pakistan Democratic Movement alliance ( PDM). He further added, “Neither does the PDM president nor its secretary-general has the authority to kick PPP out of the alliance.”

    “The differences with PPP could have been resolved over discussions or sit downs instead of sending show-cause notices,” Bukhari added.

    Sources in the PPP said the party’s senior leadership thought attending the dinner would serve in the best interest of the opposition, in giving a tough time to the PTI government in the up coming budget session in the National Assembly, The News had reported.

    As per earlier reports, Shehbaz Sharif invited the opposition leaders for a dinner on Monday, in Islamabad.

    However, PPP and ANP were not invited by the PML-N at an Opposition meeting luncheon in Senate earlier today.

  • Maryam, Shehbaz condemn alleged attack on Nawaz

    Maryam Nawaz Sharif and Shehbaz Sharif have condemned the alleged attempted attack on former prime minister Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif by unidentified men. As per details, masked, unidentified men tried to break into the office of Nawaz Sharif in London after insisting that they had an appointment with him.

    The Metropolitan police said that a criminal case has been registered and they are looking into the complaint.

    “Strongly condemn cowardly attempt to barge into the office of Hussain Nawaz where Mian Nawaz Sharif was also present,” wrote Shehbaz on Twitter.

    “They seemed to be armed and clearly had a sinister design but thankfully, could not succeed,” he added.

    Sharif also requested the London police to “investigate the incident from all angles.”

    Referring to the incident, PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz said: “People’s voices will not be silenced by low-life third rate criminals.”

    “Nawaz Sharif is the voice of the people of Pakistan and will not be silenced,” the PML-N leader added.

    In a separate tweet Maryam hinted that the people who played with the life of her father during his arrest are behind the attack.

    Meanwhile, Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Political Communications Dr Shahbaz Gill asked Maryam to apologise for her false allegations, adding that the incident was related to a car fraud and took place on Thursday. Gill further alleged that the incident was planted to stop Nawaz’s deportation from UK.

  • Peace with Pindi? Nawaz Sharif’s Spokesperson tells all

    Peace with Pindi? Nawaz Sharif’s Spokesperson tells all

    Mohammad Zubair, Spokesperson to Mian Nawaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz, claimed in a TV talk show that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has made peace with Rawalpindi. Zubair made this statement in ARY News programme ‘The Reporters’.

    Alluding to a rapprochement between the establishment and PML-N, anchorperson Sabir Shakir directly asked Mohammad Zubair about ‘sulaah‘ (rapprochement) with Rawalpindi. The PML-N leader confirmed to Shakir that there has indeed been a reconciliation.

    “All it will take is to pull the ladder away from PTI [Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf] and the government will be in trouble,” added Zubair. He said that this is what the PTI fears.

    Zubair further added that the relations of PML-N with the army have always been good.

    PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif has been targeting the establishment quite vocally. At a rally in Gujranwala held by the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) last year, Sharif’s comments against army chief shocked Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari.

    Senior PML-N politician Javed Hashmi recently criticised the establishment in a video that went viral on social media. The PML-N has officially distanced itself from Hashmi’s comments by tweeting: “Javed Hashmi’s statement about the national institution is his personal opinion.”

  • FIA bars Shehbaz from leaving the country

    FIA bars Shehbaz from leaving the country

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif was stopped by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) from leaving the country earlier today. According to the FIA, Sharif’s name is on the Person-Not-In-List (PNIL), which means that persons who are not on Exit Control List (ECL) or on black list can be stopped through PNIL. On Friday, the Lahore High Court (LHC) said Shehbaz has “one time” permission to fly abroad for medical treatment. Sharif was all set to take a flight to London but the FIA stopped him at immigration at the Allama Iqbal International Airport in Lahore.

    Talking to The Current, PML-N leader Attaullah Tarar said that this is a blatant violation of court orders despite FIA officials being present in court. “Such pettiness on behalf of the government has only exposed their nefarious designs.” Tarar, who is also part of the legal team in Sharif’s case, said that if this delay gives the prime minister satisfaction for a few days, “let him be happy”.

    Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry tweeted that Director General (DG) FIA has the authority to remove a name from a black list. “Shehbaz Sharif’s lawyers have not submitted any application to DG FIA to remove his [Sharif’s] name from the blacklist.” Chaudhry added that communicating something verbally does not mean there will be any change in the record. “The government will move the court against this decision.”

    Talking to the media, PML-N spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb said that the FIA has added Sharif’s name in another list. She said that despite written order by the LHC, stopping Shehbaz Sharif from travelling is tantamount to contempt of court. Marriyum Aurangzeb added that now we are being told by the FIA that the system has not been updated even though there were two FIA officials present in court when the LHC granted Sharif permission to travel abroad.

  • ‘PM stands with the working class, not the elite’: Fawad Chaudhry

     Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry defended the prime minister’s remarks about envoys. “PM stands with the working class and not the elite.” PM Khan chastised Pakistani envoys recently over their missions’ indifferent behaviour towards the expat community.

    “If we can’t raise our voices for overseas Pakistanis, we don’t have any right to remain in government,” added Fawad Chaudhry.

    The minister stressed that Pakistan would have to uplift the working class to progress and to strengthen itself as a country. Fawad recalled that the PM had only instructed his ambassadors that the well-being and welfare of the overseas Pakistanis must be a priority.

    The information minister spoke about an incident involving an overseas Pakistani woman, saying that she was being subjected to unjust treatment over the past few years.

    “When she contacted an [Pakistani] embassy, she was told, ‘The police should take action against you for marrying thrice’,” said Chaudhry.

    Chaudhry said the prime minister had, on many occasions in the past, said he was proud of Pakistan’s ambassadors. He said a few embassies had “closed their doors” on overseas Pakistani labourers, adding that action should be taken against those found guilty. 

  • ‘Thank you, Bilawal,’ says Shehbaz Sharif

    ‘Thank you, Bilawal,’ says Shehbaz Sharif

    Chairman Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari congratulated Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday after a resounding victory by the PML-N in PP-84 by-election. In a statement tweeted by the PPP’s official Twitter handle, Bilawal Bhutto congratulated Sharif on PML-N’s win and also added that the “consistent wins by the Opposition show clearly how disillusioned people are with the PTI and its anti-people policies. The people of Pakistan continue to give their verdict against PTI, but the selected govt refuses to listen.”

    Shehbaz Sharif responded to this tweet by thanking Bilawal. “There is no doubt that the by-election results represent an overwhelming rejection of the anti-people policies pursued by the PTI government,” tweeted Sharif.

    The last few months have seen the leaders of the PPP and PML-N indulge in a war of words, both online and offline. In March, PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz tweeted about a ‘substitute being fostered’, which some say was a dig at Bilawal Bhutto after Asif Zardari had asked Mian Nawaz Sharif to return to Pakistan during a meeting of the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM).

    When Bilawal was later asked whether Maryam’s comment was about him, he said that if he wanted to comment on the PML-N’s vice-president, he would have asked his party’s vice-president to comment on it.

  • PML-N wins PP-84 Khushab by-poll

    PML-N wins PP-84 Khushab by-poll

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s (PML-N) Moazzam Sher Kallu has won the PP-84 Khushab by-election with a significant margin. Kallu came out on top with 73,081 votes and retained the seat that was vacated after the death of PML-N lawmaker Malik Muhammad Waris Kallu in March.

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) Ali Hussain Baloch was the runner-up with 62,903 votes. Kallu’s margin of victory is 10,178 votes.

    PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif congratulated the public and winning candidate Moazzam Sher Kallu. “The people of Khushab have rejected the wheat and sugar thieves,” Sharif was quoted

    Maryam Nawaz celebrated the Khushab victory on Twitter. She said “people in every city have declared Nawaz Sharif’s victory” and derided those who wanted to “minus Nawaz Sharif”.

    “Look at the works of Allah! Only Nawaz Sharif is left [standing], while everyone else has been cut out,” added Maryam.

    A total of eight candidates stood in the race. Besides the PML-N and PTI candidates, PPP’s Ghulam Habib Ahmed was in the running, as well the banned TLP’s Asghar Ali. The independents included Amjad Raza, Aurangzeb, Imran Haider Khan, and Ilyas Khan Azad.

    The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) said in a statement that “no untoward situation of law and order has been reported at the polling station”.

    Chairman PPP Bilawal Bhutto Zardari congratulated the President PML-N Shehbaz Sharif, for the win in PP-84 by-polls.

  • How electoral reforms will affect you

    How electoral reforms will affect you

    Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry on Tuesday said the federal cabinet had approved two ordinances pertaining to the reforms in the country’s electoral system. The said electoral reforms consist of four parts; electronic voting machines (EVMs), e-voting for overseas Pakistanis, use of biometric authentication, and legislation,” the minister informed.

    https://twitter.com/FawadPTIUpdates/status/1389548245496500229

    Out of the approved ordinances, one is in relevance to the electronic voting, whereas the other aims to facilitate overseas Pakistani voters. The ordinance authorizes the Election Commission to use the EVM machine. However, Fawad Chaudhry added, PML-N and PPP are reluctant on providing this EVM facility to the overseas Pakistanis.

    He emphasized that the government has fulfilled its responsibility regarding legislation on the subject. “Technological work is to be done on biometric and e-voting,” Fawad added.

    Fawad said that after the ordinance, it is up to the ECP to include overseas Pakistanis in the voting process.

    The move comes after PPP’s NA-249 by-election victory, which was declared a “stolen” election by the PML-N.

    It also comes after PM extended an invitation to Opposition parties to sit down with the government and work on electoral reforms so elections can be made fair and transparent for all.

  • ECP accepts Miftah Ismail’s plea for a vote recount

    ECP accepts Miftah Ismail’s plea for a vote recount

    The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Tuesday reserved the verdict on PML-N’s Miftah Ismail’s plea for a vote recount in the NA-249 by-poll. The ECP accepted Ismail’s request for a vote recount . All parties have been summoned to the RO’s office on May 6 for a vote recount.

    Ismail had written a letter to Chief Election Commissioner, seeking a vote recount in NA-249 after he lost the poll by 683 votes. PPP’s Mandokhel had won the NA-249 By-Election.

    A four-member commission of the ECP headed by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja heard the plea.

    PML-N’s counsel Salman Akram Raja in his argument stated that a large number of Form 45 were not duly signed by the presiding officers, while agents of PML-N were also not given Form 46. Raja demanded the ECP to initiate an inquiry on the irregularities surfaced in the Karachi by-poll.

    The PPP’s counsel Latif Khosa opposed the re-polling in the constituency and said that it is not enough to say that irregularities were made. “You should highlight where irregularities were reported,” Khosa added.

    After hearing from both sides, the chief election commissioner announced the judgement.