Shehbaz urges political parties to hold national dialogue

Terms it only way to lead country out of current crisis

LAHORE:

Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly and PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday emphasised the need to hold a national dialogue and termed it the only way to improve the country’s current situation.

“Collective efforts are needed to take the country out of the current crisis,” he said while talking to media at the Rasm-e-Qul of his mother in Jati Umra.

Responding to a question on country’s situation, the PML-N president jokingly remarked, “first get me out on bail then I will tell you how to fix [problems of the] country”.

“Right now I have been released on parole only.”

Shehbaz advised all the political parties to come on the same page and hold a national dialogue. However, he noted that the PTI had “poisoned” the national politics and every dialogue that now began ended up with abuses.

The PML-N president fondly recalled the memories of his late mother Begum Shamim Akhtar saying that she was a caring and loving figure.

Leaders from different political parties visited Jati Umra to offer condolences over the death of Begum Shamim with the Sharif family.

MQM’s Faisal Sabzwari, ANP’s Mian Iftakhar Hussain, PMAP’s Mehmood Khan Achakzai, JI’s Liaquat Baloch and Farid Paracha, JUI-P’s Maulana Shah Owais Noorani and religious scholar Maulana Tariq Jameel met Shehbaz and Maryam and expressed their grief over Begum Shamim’s demise.