Daily Times

MULTAN: Former Senior Vice President of Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) Javed Hashmi is all set to rejoin the party later this month, reported Daily Times.

According to sources, one of the most senior politicians of the country is going to rejoin his former party in a meeting with former Prime Minister, and the president of PML-N, Nawaz Sharif at Hashmi’s residence in Multan.

Sources told Daily Times that Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz are expected to visit Hashmi’s residence on 27^th or 28^th of December where Javed Hashmi will formally announce his return to PML-N.

Earlier this month, Javed Hashmi had visited Nawaz Sharif in Islamabad were senior PML-N leaders including Railways Minister Khawaja Saad Rafique, Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal, Senator Pervaiz Rashid and Maryam Nawaz were also present. It was reported that Hashmi was invited to join PML-N by Nawaz Sharif during the meeting.

Hashmi and PML-N: The love-hate relationship

Javed Hashmi was one of the most senior politicians in PML-N ranks until he joined Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in December 2011. He was the senior vice president of the party at the time of his departure from PML-N. During the former president Pervez Musharraf’s regime, Hashmi headed the party in Pakistan as Nawaz Sharif and his brother Shehbaz Sharif served exile in Saudi Arabia first and then in London.

Hashmi remained in jails for most part of Musharraf’s tenure under a treason charge and was released in August 2007 upon Supreme Court orders when the then Chief Justice, Iftikhar Chaudhry, set aside the charges.

In 2013, when Nawaz Sharif became the prime minister of Pakistan, Hashmi pronounced him ‘my leader’ as Nawaz took the oath as the leader of the house. The senior politician from Multan was reprimanded by his party (PTI) for this statement and he was forced to issue a public apology to the PTI supporters.

In 2014, when Imran Khan led the long march against Nawaz Sharif over the alleged electoral rigging in 2013 polls, Javed Hashmi did a press conference alleging Imran Khan of conspiring against democracy in connivance with certain elements within the army and the judiciary. Imran Khan was quick to retort as he shunned Hashmi out of PTI and the next day Javed Hashmi attended the joint session of the parliament where he announced resigning from his National Assembly seat amid thunderous applause from a packed House that was leading the resistance against the joint onslaught from Imran Khan and Tahirul Qadri’s Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT).

Hashmi failed to win his seat in the following by-election as an independent candidate when PTI-backed Malik Amir Dogar defeated him in a close contest in NA-149 Multan-II. He has been a fierce critic of Imran Khan ever since he left PTI but wasn’t welcomed into PML-N until recently because of strong opposition from Multan’s local PML-N chapter.

It has been learned through sources that Hashmi will not be contesting the election from Multan in future and might be considered for senate by PML-N, who will thus be able to placate the concerns of the party loyalists in Multan.