Opposition protests: PML-N senator links ongoing agitation with Musharraf’s case

Claims ruling party is being pressed into removing former president’s name from ECL

ISLAMABAD:

A senior Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader and confidant of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has claimed his party’s government is being ‘pressured by certain forces’ into allowing former president Pervez Musharraf to leave the country.

“That is why this whole [political] drama is taking place in the country,” PML-N Senator Raja Zafarul Haq said on Sunday. He was indirectly referring to the ongoing agitation against the government by several opposition factions.



Talking to The Express Tribune, he said the PML-N government was under immense pressure to remove Musharraf’s name from the exit control list (ECL). When asked to clarify who was pressuring the ruling party, the senator pointed to “certain forces, which do not want legal action against Musharraf and want a safe exit for him instead.”

“One can easily infer that this agitation, by Musharraf’s old friends, has direct links to his [treason] case,” Haq said. He added that Prime Minister Nawaz wanted to ensure that the case ‘reaches its logical end’.

The PML-N senator also accused Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan and Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) chief Dr Tahirul Qadri of working on an ‘international agenda’. He said tackling Imran Khan, in particular, has become a big challenge for PML-N since he has changed his demands and stance several times.

In reply to a question, Haq said the PML-N government was enjoying a cordial relationship with the military.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 11^th,2014.