Shehbaz, Nawaz decide against early polls

LONDON: The first session of the crucial Pakistan Muslim League (N) huddle in London decided that there will be no early elections in Islamabad and the primary focus of the Shehbaz Sharif-led government should be on providing economic relief to the citizens and taking long-term economic decisions.

The six-hour-long meeting was held among Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, his brother and the party supremo Nawaz Sharif and other leaders, including Khwaja Asif, Miftah

Ismail, Marriyum Aurangzeb, Atta Tarar, Rana Sanaullah, Ishaq Dar, Ayaz Sadiq, at an undisclosed location in London, The News International citing sources.

Notably, the former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreeke-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan has been continuously calling for early general elections in the country since he lost the no-confidence motion in the National Assembly.

Sources said that Nawaz Sharif sought suggestions on various issues, including early elections from all the party leaders, and everyone agreed that the PML-N should implement the economic agenda for the remaining term and then announce the next elections in consultation with the coalition partners.

Soon after the meeting, information minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said that the party leaders and Prime Minister presented a full report on Pakistan’s social, economic and political situation to the supremo and briefed him on the agenda of the government and its planning.

“Nawaz Sharif is our Quaid. The meeting between Nawaz Sharif and Shehbaz Sharif was long overdue. We have inherited today’s Pakistan in a written-off situation and we needed to review the whole situation to formulate a plan. This was a private delegation,” she said, as per The News International.

Shehbaz Sharif arrived in London to meet his brother Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday.

Nawaz, who is convicted in a corruption case, has been living in London on the pretext of ill health since 2019. The former Pakistan PM sought extensions to prolong his stay in London on medical grounds.

According to Nawaz, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government had left Pakistan in a deep economic crisis.