KARACHI: Following the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan’s (MQM-P) decision to support the joint Opposition on the no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan, the party’s coordination committee announced that it had ratified the agreement between the party and the opposition.
MQM-P leader Nasreen Jalil confirmed the development while speaking to the media outside the party’s markaz in Karachi’s Bahadurabad. “Details of the agreement will be revealed in a press conference at 4pm,” she said.
The MQM-P held a late night meeting with opposition leaders on Tuesday. Initially, an opposition delegation consisting of Khawaja Asif, Sherry Rehman, Naveed Qamar, Ayaz Sadiq, Akhtar Mengal, Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah and others reached Parliament Lodges a little before midnight.
They held talks with MQM convener Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui and other leaders, which continued well into the early hours of Wednesday.
Later, the main cohort of opposition leaders — Asif Ali Zardari and his son Bilawal, Maulana Fazlur Rehman and Shehbaz Sharif — also reached the venue around 2:00am in a bid to persuade the government ally to switch sides.
In a tweet early on Wednesday, MQM-P leader Senator Faisal Subzwari said that an agreement between the party and the united opposition had been finalised.
“The PPP’s central executive committee and the MQM-P’s coordination committee will ratify the agreement,” he said, adding that the details would be announced during a 4pm press conference on Wednesday.
The same was also confirmed by PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari.
“The united opposition and MQM have reached an agreement. Rabta committee MQM and PPP CEC will ratify said agreement. We will then share details with the media in a press conference tomorrow. Congratulations Pakistan,” he said.
On Monday, PML-Q had finally put its weight behind the embattled prime minister in exchange for PM Imran conceding Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi as PTI’s candidate for Punjab chief minister after incumbent Usman Buzdar presented his resignation to the premier.
