PTI wins support of allies on electoral reforms: Fawad

Information minister says joint session of parliament will be summoned on Wednesday

The ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has addressed the reservations of its coalition partners and evolved consensus on the matter of electoral reforms, said Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry on Monday.

He said this while addressing a press conference in Islamabad after Prime Minister Imran Khan met with the leaders of allied parties — MQM-P, PML-Q, GDA and BAP.

#Live: Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry, Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid and Special Assistant to PM Shahbaz Gill talking to media in Islamabad https://t.co/ld1yClYzYf

— Radio Pakistan (@RadioPakistan) November 15, 2021

Fawad said during the huddle all reservations of coalition partners over electronic voting machines (EVMs) and other electoral reforms had been addressed.

“All allied parties have expressed full confidence over the leadership of Prime Minister Imran Khan and PTI,” he added.

Also read: Allies have ‘concerns’ over EVM bill

Fawad said it was unanimously decided in the meeting that joint session of parliament will be summoned on Wednesday at 12pm. “All electoral bills will be tabled and allied parties will support them,” he claimed.

Last week, the government put off joint session of parliament within 24 hours of its summoning due to a lack of required numbers of its lawmakers and reservations relayed by its own allies.

Speaking on the occasion, Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said that PM Imran personally addressed the queries of the allied parties and added that initially 8 to 10 electoral reforms bills out of 32 will be presented in the upcoming joint session.

Fawad also welcomed the Islamabad High Court (IHC) decision of taking notice of an affidavit, submitted by the former top judge of the Gilgit Appellate Court, accusing former chief justice Saqib Nisar of 'keeping' former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz in prison till the general elections of 2018.

“Despite taking notice, PML-N leaders held a press conference and tried to malign the judiciary,” said the information minister pleading the court to also summon PML-N leaders Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and Khawaja Saad Rafique for making “baseless allegations”.