LAHORE – Pakistan’s ruling coalition is facing a severe internal crisis in the politically crucial Punjab province, prompting President Asif Ali Zardari to personally intervene and agree to escalate the matter with the nation’s “relevant circles.”
The decision followed a tempestuous meeting of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), where, according to sources, a majority of attendees expressed deep displeasure and frustration with the conduct of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz of the PML-N.
The sense of disillusionment within the meeting was palpable. Multiple senior provincial and central leaders, citing the “negative politics” of the PML-N, strongly proposed that the PPP should abandon the governing coalition and sit on the opposition benches, particularly in Punjab.
PPP leaders forcefully argued that the party must either formally join the cabinet and become part of the government or, failing that, take a principled position in the opposition. A sense of regret was also expressed over the Prime Minister’s perceived lack of authority over affairs in Punjab.
Party leaders urged President Zardari to inform the “relevant circles” how CM Maryam Nawaz’s actions were creating obstacles within the alliance. Agreeing to the proposal, President Zardari reportedly asked the attendees for one month to manage the situation.
According to PPP’s parliamentary leader in Punjab, Ali Haider Gilani, President Zardari is also expected to raise these grievances directly in a meeting with PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif.
Sources added that President Zardari briefed the participants on the grave security situation facing the country. He cited mounting challenges on both the eastern and western borders, stressing the urgent need to focus all energies on national unity at this critical juncture.
However, when pressed by party members on the request to move to the opposition benches in Punjab, President Zardari reportedly rejected a fractured approach, stating that the party has made a “principled decision to adopt a uniform policy” at the national level.
