Islamabad: The release from jail of former Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, and his daughter Maryam Nawaz, has re-kindled hopes for the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz camp party.
Former federal minister Dr Tariq Fazal Chaudhry said the Islamabad High Court’s decision suspending the Accountability Court’s verdict convicting Sharif, Maryam and her husband, Retired Captain Mohammad Safdar, has given new impetus to the ongoing by-elections.
Chaudhry said the incumbent Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government had hiked gas prices, imposed indirect taxes and taken a number of U-turns within its first month in office.
The former minister, who is running the election campaign for PML-N’s Raja Waqar Mumtaz in the NA-53 constituency, expressed confidence that the PML-N would win the seat by an overwhelming majority.
Since the Sharifs were released, PML-N candidate for NA-60 (Rawalpindi) Sajjad Khan has also started door-to-door campaign and is holding meetings with the people of the constituency on regular basis.
Before September 19, the date of the Sharifs’ release, only one senior leader, Chaudhry Tanveer Khan, was extending all out support to Sajjad Khan but after that the local government is lending him full support.
“Our leadership stands vindicated and those who were spreading rumors are exposed today,” he said.
Meanwhile, in order to contest election from a joint platform, a delegation of the PML-N senior leaders under the chairmanship of Senator Raja Zafarul Haq has held talks with Pakistan People’s Party leadership recently.
According to sources, during the meeting, the PML-N delegation has shared PML-N leader Nawaz Sharif’s wish to create a joint front and contest the upcoming by-elections unitedly.
During the meeting, the issue of the cooperation in the Parliament and bringing joint candidates in the by-elections were also discussed.
