ISLAMABAD: A day after the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) chief tweeted a warning against legislation aimed at delaying the 2018 elections, Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Syed Khursheed Shah expressed the hope that the elections would be held on time.

“Those deviating from the Constitution have seen their fate,” said the opposition leader on Wednesday while talking to the media at Parliament House.

In reply to a question about talks of technocracy, he said that “look at where Shaukat Aziz and Moeen Qureshi had come from and where they have gone”.

Observes there is no room for technocrats’ govt in Constitution

“If technocrats could serve the country, there would have been technocracy in the United States and Europe instead of democracy,” Mr Shah said, adding that there were provisions within the ambit of the law which were acceptable to all, while decisions based on coercion, rigging and partiality were detrimental to the country and its people.

He claimed that the decision taken by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) to put forward Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif as prime ministerial candidate after the 2018 elections was a political move.

The opposition leader said he was happy that former prime minister Nawaz Sharif had decided to return to Pakistan and face cases against him.

“Jail and bail are common in politics,” Mr Shah quipped, adding that the former premier and his family were currently facing trial as an accountability court was hearing corruption references filed against them.

The opposition leader also criticised PTI chairman Imran Khan for not attending National Assembly sessions.

“If one wants to be involved in politics then attendance in parliament is necessary,” he added.

He said that all political parties would have to get together to discuss problems being faced by the country.

The leader of the opposition also said that Pakistan’s relations with America would have to be brought under discussion.

“We will have to talk about statements made by Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif in Washington and the statements made by US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson in India,” Mr Shah added.

Published in Dawn, November 2nd, 2017