Imran Khan to call meeting of all parties in bid to rope in old allies: Parvez Elahi

In a bid to unite with its old allies, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf has restored contacts and Chairman Imran Khan will soon call a meeting in this regards, party President Chaudhry Parvez Elahi has revealed.

“Contacts with all the old allies, including the [Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan] MQM-P, have been restored,” the senior politician said in a statement on Sunday.

The former Punjab chief minister also claimed that the Balochistan government and the Grand Democratic Alliance have strong reservations about the incumbent government's anti-Constitution and anti-national policies.

“Imran Khan will soon call a meeting of all the parties and communicate the next plan of action,” Elahi added.

Commenting on the MQM-P political alliance with the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), the PTI leader said that the party had suffered immense political loss following its alliance with the ruling bloc — a group of 13 political parties.

He added that thought exists within the MQM-P which believes there is no point in continuing the alliance with the PDM.

The MQM-P, a day earlier, slammed dynastic politics in the country and also shared its concerns regarding its agreement with the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) — the ruling party in Sindh.

"Only we can understand the outcome of the agreement that the MQM-P made with the PPP. We lost huge political capital because of making working relations with the PPP," said Dr Khali Maqbool Siddiqui, the party's convener.

Despite being part of the PDM, the MQM-P has, time and again, continued to share its reservations on various matters with the PPP and the federal government. Earlier this week, the party met Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to share its concerns regarding the ongoing digital census and other matters pertaining to Karachi.

'Unconstitutional demands'

Censuring the PDM for its decision to boycott the Supreme Court’s three-judge bench hearing the polls delay case, Elahi said: “The PDM’s declaration based on unconstitutional demands is an open interference in the Supreme Court’s affairs. The government declaration has used threatening and insulting language against the apex court.”

Parvez Elahi, the former Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) leader, also claimed that the 13-party ruling alliance is taking its last hiccups. He alleged that the PDM-led government’s last resort to stop the election would also prove unsuccessful.

A day earlier, the PDM decided to boycott the apex court's three-judge bench during a meeting with PM Shehbaz in Lahore — a decision also backed by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif.

Following the meeting, the alliance's President Maulana Fazlur Rehman — who is also the chief of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) — said the bloc has no trust in the top court bench — headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial.

"We have no faith in this court. The PDM doesn't trust the bench comprising these three judges," he said.

'Incompetent, absconder for life'

Slamming the PML-N supremo for his participation in the meeting where the PDM’s decision was made, the PTI leader deemed it a joke with the nation and institutions.

“The government meeting headed by absconder Nawaz Sharif is a serious joke with the nation and institutions,” he said.

According to Geo News sources, the PML-N supremo pitched the strategy during the meeting convened at the prime minister’s residence in Model Town, Lahore to deliberate ways to create counterweights for PTI's mounting legal pressure on the government.

As per the sources, Nawaz's blunt opinion was: “There is no expectation of justice from the three-member bench”.

Elahi, continuing with his criticism against the senior Sharif, said that he is incompetent and an absconder for life. He also arraigned the incumbent premier for bailing his brother out and that a case should be filed against him as well.