Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) took the decision to appoint Shah Mehmood Qureshi as the deputy parliamentary leader of the party in the National Assembly in place of Javed Hashmi immediately after the May 11 general elections.
“Qureshi was not appointed the deputy leader on the spur of the moment after Hashmi goofed up by describing Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif as his leader,” a senior PTI stalwart told local media.
He said allocation of top parliamentary positions to different senior leaders was decided by the PTI shortly after the polls, and the Hashmi’s ill-advised comments regarding Nawaz Sharif were not the reason behind this decision. The purpose, instead, was to accommodate all lead runners, who occupy top positions in the party. Therefore Hashmi was fielded as the party’s candidate for the office of the prime minister against Nawaz Sharif. On the same lines, Qureshi was named as the deputy parliamentary leader.
In PTI Chairman Imran Khan’s absence from the National Assembly, which will be frequent for several months due to his health, Qureshi will be running the party inside the House. Thus, he would gain more importance while Hashmi will act as an ordinary member. Given his continuing attack on Nawaz Sharif (called for or uncalled for), he is unexpected to get any softer treatment from the ruling party, the PML-N.
Whatever the logic and reason provided by Hashmi for retracting his remark about Nawaz Sharif, it was nothing but the enormous pressure of the PTI enthusiasts through their favourite means, social media, which forced him to go back on his utterance. Even senior PTI leaders were upset over Hashmi’s remark because it came at the time when they were repeatedly asserting that they would play the role of the real opposition in and out of the National Assembly against the Nawaz Sharif government and will not act as the “friendly opposition”.
Hashmi also claims that he has no qualms regarding Imran Khan’s decision to elevate Qureshi as the deputy parliamentary leader, adding that he recommended this step to the PTI chief. According to Qureshi, he did not find himself suitable for the position because it requires someone who can endure physical and mental stress.