ISLAMABAD: The post-election wheeling-dealing in Pakistan’s most populous Punjab province reached its culmination on Thursday after Governor Muhammad Baligh-ur-Rehman summoned the inaugural session of the legislative assembly for the oath-taking ceremony tomorrow.

The governor called the session only a day after the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) held a parliamentary party meeting under the leadership of Maryam Nawaz Sharif who is expected to take charge as the first female chief minister of the province soon.

The PML-N emerged as the largest party in the Punjab Assembly in the wake of the last general elections held earlier this month. According to media analyzes, the party is in a comfortable position to form the next provincial administration after its parliamentary party meeting was attended by well over 200 newly elected lawmakers.

“In exercise of the powers conferred under Article 109 read with Article 130(2) of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, I, Muhammad Baligh-ur-Rehman, Governor of the Punjab, hereby summon Provincial Assembly of the Punjab to meet on 23rd February 2024 (Friday) at 10:00 am, in the Provincial Assembly Chambers Lahore,” said the short order circulated by the Governor’s House.

A party requires 186 members to form the government in Punjab. The PML-N that won 137 seats has been joined by about two dozen independent members and is likely to bag a significant number of reserved seats.

Punjab holds a pivotal position in Pakistan’s politics due to its population density that gives it 141 out of 266 general seats in the National Assembly.

Historically, the party that secures a stronghold in Punjab often manages to form the government at the center.

The PML-N’s candidate for the position of chief minister, Sharif plans to set new governance benchmarks and shared her vision for the province during the parliamentary party meeting only a day earlier.

Separately, Sindh Governor Muhammad Kamran Khan Tessori issued an order summoning the inaugural session of the provincial assembly on Saturday, Feb. 24, at 11:00 a.m.

“In exercise of the powers conferred upon me under clause (a) of Article 109 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan,1973 and other provisions enabling me in this behalf, I, Muhammad Kamran Khan Tessori, Governor of Sindh, hereby summon the Provincial Assembly of Sindh to meet on Saturday the 24th day of February 2024 at 11.00 a.m. at the Sindh Assembly Building. Karachi,” the order read.