ISLAMABAD:
After days of a heated war of words, there appears to be thaw in the strained relationship between the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and the Pakistan People’s Party as Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif reached out to PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari.
According to the PPP media cell, both leaders discussed the current political situation, the ongoing flood crisis, and matters related to foreign policy.
The development follows a meeting in Nawabshah between President Asif Ali Zardari and a government delegation comprising Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar and National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq. It was aimed at easing tensions between the two parties after growing friction between the leaders of the Sindh and Punjab governments.
In a post on X, the PPP confirmed the telephone call had taken place and that the country’s political situation, foreign policy and flood aid were among the topics of discussion.
Tensions had escalated to such an extent that the PPP staged walkouts from the Senate and National Assembly sessions and even the party hinted to sit on opposition benches in Punjab Assembly. PPP central leader Sherry Rehman even warned that the government could lose its majority in the Senate without the party’s support.
Despite the discord, President Zardari maintained a reconciliatory tone, urging calm and dialogue. He also contacted Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, asking him to mediate between the allies to help defuse the crisis.
Amid heated exchanges, key political figures from both sides, including Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari, PPP leader Aseefa Bhutto Zardari, Sindh Senior Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon, and Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab joined the fray along with other local leaders.
Interestingly, the verbal spat between the coalition partners started over the use of the Benazir Income Support Programme for providing support to the flood-affected people in Punjab.
The PPP has long been advocating the proposal that the BISP would be the most suitable way to support the flood victims; however, the Punjab government is averse to the idea. The provincial government insists that the government’s flood relief efforts were going on well.
First Lady Aseefa Bhutto Zardari warned that it would be “unfair not utilising” the BISP, which, according to her, was the “most effective way” to distribute aid.
Her comments came a day after Bokhari revealed that the provincial government would issue “relief cards” to the flood victims in their personal names from its own resources instead of using the BISP to assist them.
Aseefa wrote on X that recent floods in Punjab impacted more than four million people, stressing that the BISP would be the most effective and fastest way for the distribution of aid.
However, Bokhari strongly criticised the PPP for dragging the BISP into the floods. “No one wants to abolish the BISP. The question is: why do you want to use it during floods?” Bokhari mentioned. “Dragging it repeatedly into flood politics is exactly what we call politicisation.”
She accused the PPP of ignoring the interests of the people of Punjab and resorting to flood politics. She defended the Punjab government’s performance during the floods, saying that even Bilawal had praised Maryam.
Questioning the PPP’s role in Punjab, the provincial information minister said: “When will you, while living in Punjab, ever fight Punjab’s case? Do you want the people of Punjab to be deprived of wheat, flour, and bread?”.
She added: “If you were capable of doing anything, you wouldn’t be sitting at home telling us where the flood was going to strike or where the embankment was going to breach. Such decisions are made by governments according to situation and circumstances.”
