February 26, 2008	Tuesday	Safar 18, 1429

PESHAWAR, Feb 25: Senior president of the Awami National Party (ANP) Asfandyar Wali Khan has claimed that the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leadership has agreed to accommodate the ANP’s longstanding demands of renaming the frontier province, granting complete provincial autonomy and resolution of the issue of net hydel profit after forming coalition governments at the centre, in the NWFP and Sindh.

He was talking to mediapersons after attending a meeting of a 30-member special committee of the party at the Bacha Khan Markaz here on Monday, which unanimously endorsed party’s decisions regarding formation of coalition governments with the PPP at the centre and in the two provinces.

Party’s senior vice-president Ghulam Ahmad Bilour, provincial president Afrasiab Khattak and other leaders were also present on the occasion.

Mr Khan said: “We are joining the coalition government on the condition that we would be granted complete provincial autonomy that would not be confined to abolition of the concurrent list, but the provinces be empowered fiscally as well as be allowed legislation in the area of provincial subjects”.

He said that the committee had been given the task to sort out modalities of the future set up in the NWFP. “Nothing has been finalised yet. It would take some time. At the moment, we are busy in parleys to pave the way for the establishment of a government at the centre that would be followed by formation of governments in the provinces”, he added.

About the nominee of the party for the chief minister slot in the province, he said that the parliamentary party would decide about the name.

“I assure you; we will not let the judiciary down. The issue of the deposed judges needs to be decided by the Parliament”, he said categorically. About PML-N’s stand regarding the ANP-PPP coalition, he said he would be holding a meeting with Mian Nawaz Sharif in a few days to discuss all political issues.