ISLAMABAD: The PPP’s policy of extending all-out support to the PML-N government in the prevailing crisis has exposed fault lines within the party on provincial basis.

At a party’s meeting presided over by co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari here on Wednesday, PPP members from Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa expressed serious reservations over the party’s stance over the issue created by sit-ins in Islamabad by Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT).

Sources in the party said that the members expressed reservations over the speech made by Leader of Opposition in National Assembly Syed Khurshid Shah during the joint sitting of parliament.

On the other hand, Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan received praises for hitting out at Nawaz Sharif and Shahbaz Sharif in his speech and making it clear that the party was standing with the PML-N by compulsion.

The sources said that members from Punjab were of the opinion that since the PML-N was their main rival in the province, therefore, a clear line should be drawn which should not be crossed by the party while extending support to the government.

President of PPP Punjab Central Manzoor Wattoo, former chairman of the Public Accounts Committee Nadeem Afzal and former MNA from Peshawar Noor Alam Khan remained most vocal at the meeting.

The two leaders from Punjab were of the view that the party’s “overwhelming support” to the government was weakening the party position in the province and sending negative signals to party activists.

The sources quoted one of the members as saying that tomorrow the party might not find any person to offer sacrifices for the party.

Mr Wattoo said the performance of the PPP’s government in Sindh would have an impact on the party’s performance in the next general elections.

Since all the four provinces had governments of different parties, therefore, the performance of provincial governments would be seen as a benchmark in the next elections, he added.

Responding to Mr Wattoo’s observations, Mr Zardari said it was on the basis of the performance of the Sindh government that the party had managed to form the government in the province.

Noor Alam objected to the party’s policy in the current situation and suggested that the PPP should have remained neutral in the current crisis.

When contacted, Noor Alam said he had told Mr Zardari that all the three main players in the present impasse — PML-N, PTI and PAT — had made serious allegations against the PPP leadership.

He proposed that the PPP should seek opening of constituencies for audit of votes in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Published in Dawn, September 5th, 2014