Shehbaz reaches across political divisions to strengthen anti-govt front

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif has ramped up his efforts to reach across political divisions in order to consolidate the joint opposition in parliament against the ruling party.

On Monday, the PML-N chief called Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, multi-party opposition alliance Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Jamaat-e-Islami chief Sirajul Haq, Qaumi Watan Party head Aftab Sherpao, Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M) President Akhtar Mengal and Awami National Party (ANP) central leader Amir Haider Hoti.

Shehbaz also contacted National Party chief Dr Abdul Malik Baloch, Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party’s Shafiq Tareen, and MNA Mohsin Dawar of the National Democratic Movement (NDM) and discussed the current political environment with the political leaders.

During the conversations, Shehbaz congratulated the opposition leaders for defeating the government-backed legislation through unity and cooperation among the opposition lawmakers. He said the PTI was 'forced to retreat' due to the joint stance of the opposition.

He added that the joint opposition will defeat drafts for “black laws” of the government in the next joint session of parliament.

During the conversation, Bilawal told Shehbaz that all the policies of the government could be defeated through parliament. “Parliament is the forum where elected representatives fight the case of the people,” he said, adding that this was not the first defeat of the government in parliament.

Read Opposition's anti-govt movements an attempt to stay relevant: Fawad

The fresh contact with the opposition came a day after a steering committee of the joint opposition wherein it was decided to block legislation by the government that purportedly favoured individuals instead of the nation.

Earlier, the government was left red-faced after its failure to block an anti-horse-trading bill due to low attendance on the treasury benches.

The proposed law bars candidates affiliated with political parties from contesting elections from any other party for at least seven years.

The bill, if passed into law, could have a significant impact on the political structure of the country — several ‘electables’ in parliament, especially from PTI and BAP, would have been affected by the restrictions, including almost half of Prime Minister Imran Khan’s cabinet and Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar.