Daily Times

LAHORE: When an unpopular party hanged some campaigning posters in favour of Chief of Army Staff Chief Raheel Sharif’s rule, all four opposition parties in Punjab Assembly on Wednesday held an emergent parliamentary meeting, unanimously rejecting the idea of any military coup in Pakistan.

Opposition parties including Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), Pakistan Muslim League (Q) and Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) announced to launch an agitation campaign against the government’s corruption and in favour of midterm elections after July 20.

The joint opposition held a press conference at the Punjab Assembly Secretariat’s Committee Room after holding its parliamentary leaders meeting, chaired by Opposition Leader Mian Mehmoodur Rasheed in his chamber.

After the meeting, the opposition leader announced a joint declaration on which all four opposition parties agreed. In the declaration, it was stated that the joint opposition was united and ready to adopt all possible protesting options against the government’s corruption and Panama leaks issue.

According to the declaration, the opposition parties demanded the government that it would not step back from its basic stance of accountability of the Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his family members named in the Panama leaks. The opposition urged the PM to present himself along with his family for accountability before the accountability of other people named in the leaks.

The declaration demanded PM Nawaz Sharif to accept the proposed terms of Reference (ToRs) of the opposition and probe into Panama leaks if he was sincere to hold accountability in this regard. The declaration also highlighted the issue of unscheduled load shedding of electricity across the country despite repeated promises of eradicating the menace by the government during election campaigns of 2013. The oppositions announced to agitate against the continuing unannounced load shedding of electricity in Punjab.

The declaration also demanded the government to reduce the rates of electricity units. While answering queries of the journalists, the opposition leader, denying any support for military coup, stated that they were not in favour of army to come into power but they wanted to send the sitting government of Nawaz Sharif home, besides holding midterm elections in the country for which they would start a protest campaign after July 20.

It is pertinent to mention that the parliamentary leaders of the opposition parties in Punjab Assembly also decided in their meeting that they would send their suggestions regarding their agitation campaign in different parts of the country and after necessary deliberations and recommendations, they would start their protest across the province.

Opposition Leader Mian Mehmoodur Rasheed, Deputy Opposition Leader Sabtain Khan, legislators Ejaz Bukhari and Waheed Dogar of PTI, legislator Faiza Ahmad Malik of PPP, Sardar Waqas Hasan Moakal and Dr Waseem Akhtar of JIP participated in the parliamentary leaders’ meeting of the opposition parties in Punjab Assembly.