Disputes within PDM stand exposed: Qureshi

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said on Monday that the disagreement between Maryam Nawaz and Shehbaz Sharif over resignation from assemblies was now out in the open, while Bilawal Bhutto and Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman also seemed divided on how to lead the ongoing movement.

"Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman is bent upon holding a long march [against the government], whereas Bilawal Bhutto wants to head to the assemblies as he feels that his politics of protest has failed to impress the masses," the veteran Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader said while speaking to the media in Islamabad.

"There is also a severe internal disturbance within the JUI-F," he noted.

Further referring to the opposition's politicking, Qureshi said, "we and our allies will tackle a move of no-confidence [against Prime Minister Imran Khan] politically and democratically, and in a parliamentary way; and we'll defeat it."

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"The disputes within the ranks of Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) stand exposed as it is an unnatural and temporary alliance," he maintained.

Afghan peace process

The foreign minister said Pakistan took practical measures to help the world realise that the country wants peace and stability in the region. "We are playing a mediating role for peace in Afghanistan and the world is appreciating our stance," he noted.

Speaking in Multan a day ago, Qureshi said that the government was prepared to defeat a no-confidence motion in case the opposition decided to go that way.

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He stated that the opposition alliance had started to disintegrate, claiming that the political parties that were part of the PDM were not focused anymore.

The reports of differences between the parties emerged on Saturday as PML-N’s Ahsan Iqbal disagreed with PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari’s recommendation of tabling a no-confidence motion in parliament, instead of organising protest rallies across the country to remove the ruling party from power.