Chief Minister of Punjab Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi has said that the Punjab Assembly will not be dissolved for the next four months, increasing confusion over the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) plan to dissolve provincial assemblies.
In an interview with a private TV channel, Elahi said, “One should do their homework till March. We have reservations about the Chief Election Commissioner. So we need to look into that. We will also see how the Opposition behaves. So yes, the assembly stays intact till March.”
The Punjab Chief Minister said that both Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) made offers to Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q); however, the party supported the former on the advice of the former Chief of Army Staff (COAS), General (retd) Bajwa.
Elahi said that he received offers from both camps — PTI and PDM — but in line with the advice of the former army chief, his party preferred to choose Khan.
The chief minister maintained that his son Moonis Elahi also suggested that they should side with the PTI.
Commenting on his past experiences with the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, CM Elahi said that there were always apprehensions about the Sharifs “lying” to them.
“I was with the Sharifs for 18 years, they always lied to us. I would [often] say the Sharifs won’t let me do anything for the province,” he said recalling his discussions with the “institution” on whom to support during the Vote of No Confidence.
“When we discussed this with the institution, they suggested thinking about what was better for us. We consult the institution when such a situation arises,” Elahi said, adding that the institution told them that choosing PTI was a “respectable and better option”.
