With the National Assembly completing its stipulated term of five years on Saturday, the dialogue between the government and opposition parties has gained momentum.
Leader of the Opposition in National Assembly Nisar Ali Khan has contacted Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf and informed him that his party had rejected all three nominations made by the government, and had also withdrawn the nomination of Justice (r) Shakirullah Jan.
No immediate justification was provided to the media by the PML-N for withdrawing Justice (r) Jan’s name, and the race for the caretaker premier has now narrowed down to five nominees – three forwarded by the government and two by the opposition.
The opposition’s decision of removing the name of Justice (r) Shakirullah Jan’s name from the interim PMs’ list of nominees came as a surprise for many and has left the government and political analysts with fingers crossed.
The PML-N was a staunch supporter of Justice (r) Jan and his name was even proposed by the party for the post of chief election commissioner.
Meanwhile, government sources said the name of Nasir Aslam Zahid was unacceptable to the ruling PPP as it believed the retired judge was partial. They said two major coalition partners of the PPP – the PML-Q and ANP – had given a nod to the name of Dr Ishrat Hussain – making him a favourite for the slot.
However, a PPP leader said since the party had not made a formal announcement of its nominees, a dark horse may emerge if consensus was not evolved by March 22.
A source in the PML-N said the opposition took the decision due to rising apprehension that the government might give a final nod to Justice (r) Jan’s name for the slot.
“The stand-off between the government and the opposition continues and the chances of developing a consensus over the issue seem meagre, especially after the opposition’s surprising move of withdrawing the retired judge’s name,” he added.
The PML-N source said the step had been taken after some reports of covert contacts made between the retired judge and the government through a real estate tycoon.
“The prime minister has been informed that the name of Justice (r) Shakirulllah Jan has been withdrawn by the leader of the opposition. The prime minister continues to make efforts to reach an agreement on the name of a caretaker prime minister. In case an agreement is not possible, the government shall forward the names of two persons to the parliamentary committee as stipulated in the constitution,” the source said.
Meanwhile, a source in the ruling PPP said the party wanted to take the appointment of the caretaker prime minister to the parliamentary committee or the Election Commission to get its nominees elected.
“We have a plan to work on. We will win majority in the parliamentary committee,” the source said, adding that when the time arrived, the PPP would show its cards.
Another source said the PPP was in a position to lure in support from the MQM which was now an opposition party and its nominee might support the PPP’s nominee when the time called.
“The MQM is now in the opposition and its nominee will be a part of the parliamentary committee to be formed by the National Assembly speaker under the law. When the time comes, the MQM and JUI-F members may opt to vote for PPP’s nominee,” the source added.
He added that even if this plan failed to deliver, the PPP had a plan-B, as the matter would be forwarded to the election commission for nomination of the caretaker PM.
“The PPP may win a majority in the ECP as three of the five members of the ECP – in Sindh, Balochistan and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa – have been appointed by the PPP and its allied parties and they will vote for a nominee made by the PPP and its allied parties by three votes against two. However, what happens on D-Day is anybody’s guess. Let’s see if the plan is successful,” the source added.
A PML-N leader, when contacted, said Nisar was not willing to nominate any member of the MQM as member of the parliamentary committee, as the sole power for nominating opposition’s members lay with the leader of the opposition.
“We have not accepted the MQM members as opposition members. So no MQM member would be a part of the parliamentary committee,” the PML-N said.
In a letter written to the opposition leader on Thursday, the prime minister had proposed the names of former finance minister Dr Abdul Hafeez Sheikh, former State Bank director Dr Ishrat Hussain, and former chief justice of the Balochistan High Court Mir Hazar Khan Khoso for caretaker PM.
The two nominees proposed by the opposition leader are Justice (r) Nasir Aslam Zahid and Sindhi politician Rasul Bakhsh Palejo.