ISLAMABAD: Consultations on dissolving assemblies and forming a caretaker setup are underway with no final decision reached yet, senior leaders of Pakistan’s ruling coalition parties confirmed this week, hoping that a consensus on the issues would be reached before the government’s tenure expires next month.
The five-year tenure of Pakistan’s National Assembly, the lower house of the parliament, would expire on August 12 at midnight. Pakistan’s constitution stipulates that elections should be held within 60 days if the assemblies complete their tenure, and within 90 days if they are dissolved before their term expires. Last week, Sharif said his government would go home before its tenure expires and hand over the reins of the country to a caretaker setup.
Leaders of Pakistan’s ruling coalition parties, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) met in Dubai last month to reportedly discuss the formation of the interim government. However, as per media reports, the two parties could not form a consensus on the matter.
“Consultations are underway as the prime minister is meeting different coalition partners because there is still around three weeks’ time left,” Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah, who is also a senior leader of the PML-N, told Arab News.
The PML-N is a member of the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), a coalition of 13 political parties in Pakistan that was formed in September 2020 against then-Prime Minister Imran Khan’s government. On April 10, 2022, the PDM ousted Khan from office via parliamentary vote and elected Shehbaz Sharif as his successor.
Sanaullah said Pakistan’s election regulator would announce the date for the upcoming polls once a caretaker government has been formed. However, he said deliberations are underway with coalition partners to determine when the government would go home.
“It is still not decided whether the government will dissolve the assembly a few days before completing its tenure or if it will work till the last day,” he added.
Faisal Karim Kundi, another member of the cabinet and the PPP’s central information secretary, also confirmed that the prime minister was holding consultations with coalition partners to determine the date for the dissolution of assemblies and formation of an interim government.
“In this regard, the PPP leadership, including Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari, met the prime minister multiple times recently to discuss the caretaker setup,” Kundi told Arab News.
Initially a member of the PDM, the PPP parted ways with the alliance in 2021. Kundi confirmed the party would contest elections as an independent political entity.
“Regarding an election alliance, the PPP is not likely to form one with the PDM,” he said. “Instead, they will contest the elections using their own symbol, with possible seat adjustments, as we are not part of the PDM alliance.”
Jamiat Ulema Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) secretary-general, Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri, said his party’s chief Maulana Fazal Ur Rehman met Sharif recently to discuss various election-related issues, including the formation of a caretaker setup.
“The two leaders also discussed the possibility of forming alliances for the elections,” he told Arab News.
Haideri said consultations were underway, adding that no final decision had been reached yet.
“The final decision will be made and announced when the appropriate time arrives,” he added.
MQM-Pakistan spokesperson Ahsan Ghauri endorsed that his party leadership had also met Sharif to discuss the upcoming elections.
“We have expressed reservations about the accuracy of the voter lists and have presented evidence and proofs to the [election] commission, and one crucial point discussed in the meeting with the prime minister revolves around voter lists,” Ghauri told Arab News.
Ghauri said his party demanded that elections be held based on the results of the new population census.
“As for the prime minister’s stance, he hasn’t confirmed whether elections will proceed based on the new census or not, as he has left the decision to the discretion of the Election Commission of Pakistan,” he added.
He said a PML-N committee formed by Sharif to hold talks with allies on the caretaker setup has not sought the MQM-P’s opinion so far.
“At this stage, we haven’t provided any names since the Raabta committee meeting has not yet taken place,” Ghauri said, referring to his party’s top leadership.
