As the race for Punjab’s chief minister’s election heats up, PTI Chairman Imran Khan claimed on Wednesday that horse-trading was happening in Lahore with MPAs being offered Rs500 million to switch their loyalty. “Today, Lahore is seeing a repetition of the Sindh House horse-trading episode that happened in Islamabad, with up to Rs500 million being offered to buy MPAs,” tweeted the PTI chairman. He alleged that PPP Co-chairperson Asif Ali Zardari was the “main architect” behind this, adding that the former president has secured an “NRO for his corruption and purchases people with looted wealth”. The former prime minister also demanded the PPP leader be jailed. “This is not only an attack on our democracy but also on the moral fabric of our society. Had Supreme Court taken action and debarred these turncoats for life, it would have acted as a deterrent,” claimed the PTI chairman. He also asked the “handlers” of the incumbent government whether they realised the “severe damage being done to the nation”. The PTI chairman further claimed that after his government was “toppled with stolen money from Sindh and NRO 2 achieved, certified criminal Asif Zardari in cahoots with Sharif mafia now seeking to steal Punjab people’s mandate by trying to purchase MPAs”. “Want to ask Honourable Supreme Court are they not cogniscant of the damage being wreaked? Isn’t destruction of our democracy, Constitution and nation’s morality a fit case for Suo Moto action? Are the “Neutrals” not realising how our beloved country is literally being destroyed on all fronts by the Imported government brought in through US regime change conspiracy?” asked the former prime minister. Khan’s tweet came hours after, PTI leader and former provincial minister Murad Raas claimed that the party’s lawmakers were being offered between Rs30 million and Rs50 million each by PML-N to change their loyalties ahead of the vote recount for the Punjab chief minister post. In a tweet, Raas referred to the PML-N as “chors (thiefs)”. Referring to PML-N, he said these “shameless chors are trying to do everything to stay in power”. Mian Aslam Iqbal, leader of the PTI, stated that the party’s numbers were complete, but that a “market was being set up to buy members.” Dr Yasmin Rashid, another PTI leader, stated that the PTI does not want to start a fight. “We have won 15 seats. The people have spoken,” she said. The former Punjab health minister added that Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah should tone down his threatening rhetoric, stating that he was also responsible for the Model Town massacre and that if the politics of looting had been acceptable, people would have voted for PML-N. The landslide victory of PTI in the Punjab by-polls has completely changed the numbers game in the Punjab Assembly and Chaudhry Pervez Elahi is most likely to replace Hamza Shahbaz Sharif as the new chief minister of the province. Almost all the turncoats who joined the PML-N and voted for Hamza lost to the PTI candidates. In the Sunday by-elections, PTI won 15 out of the total 20 seats. PML-N won four and one independent won the remaining seat. Already, before the by-polls, PTI and PML-Q had jointly attained the strength of 173 (163 of PTI and 10 of PML-Q). Now, with 15 additional seats, the total seats in hand have reached 188, whereas the figure for the simple majority stands at 186. The PTI and PML-Q have crossed that landmark.