Senior PML-N leaders head to London to consult Shehbaz on ‘important political matters’

Pakistan

Members of the PML-N parliamentary group departed for London on Thursday to meet ailing former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and to consult party president Shehbaz Sharif on important issues, said party spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb.

Speaking to DawnNewsTV, Aurangzeb said the PML-N delegation will seek the leadership’s guidance on parliamentary matters. According to party sources, a meeting of the senior PML-N leadership, headed by Shehbaz, will take place on Friday.

A spokesperson for PML-N’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa President Ameer Muqam said he had departed from Islamabad to head to London in the morning. However, he added that Muqam had gone on his own, separate from the PML-N delegation.

Meanwhile, PML-N workers confirmed that the parliamentary advisory group for the party was heading to London. According to party members, Aurangzeb, MNAs Khawaja Asif, Rana Tanvir, Sardar Ayaz Sadiq and Senator Pervez Rashid have already left for London while party’s secretary general Ahsan Iqbal is expected to leave tomorrow.

The sources added that the group will discuss the law regarding an extension in the army chief’s tenure, the appointment of Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) members as well as politics in the country.

The final decision regarding the law for extending the army chief’s tenure will be made by Nawaz, the sources said.

The opposition and government are facing a deadlock over the appointments of ECP members, as both sides have failed to reach a consensus on the matter. Though both Shehbaz and Prime Minister Imran Khan have sent their recommendations for the post to the relevant parliamentary committee, an agreement is yet to be reached.

Members of the opposition on Wednesday approached the Supreme Court requesting it to “pass an appropriate order” in the wake of an impasse in parliament on the appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and two ECP members.

Meanwhile, on November 28, the apex court in its short order announced that Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa would remain the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) for another six months, during which the parliament will legislate on the extension/reappointment of an army chief.

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