ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan on Friday started preparations for formation of his party’s government at the Centre after the PTI won a majority of seats in the National Assembly.

The PTI is also working to form its government in Punjab and for this purpose it has started contacting leaders of different parties and independent candidates.

Read: PTI, PML-N go head to head for control of Punjab

PTI leader Jehangir Tarin made telephonic contacts with the head of a faction of Muttahidda Qaumi Movement (MQM), Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui.

The MQM faction and the PPP did not participate in the Multi-Party Conference (MPC) convened by the Muttahidda Majlis-i-Amal (MMA) leader and JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rahman in Islamabad on Friday.

When contacted, PTI spokesman Fawad Chaudhry claimed that PTI had clinched 137 seats of the National Assembly out of 270 and, therefore, it would easily form its government at the Centre.

He also claimed that the number of PTI’s successful candidates in Punjab was 130, while the number of PML-N seats according to unofficial results of the polls, is said to be 127.

“We will definitely form our government in Punjab as we are in contact with 21 independent candidates,” the PTI leader said

When asked who will be the next chief ministers of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, he said that the matter would be decided by PTI chairman Imran Khan.

Talking about provincial setup of Balochistan, he said that the PTI was in a position to form a coalition government in Balochistan as well.

Meanwhile, Ambassador of Saudi Arabia to Pakistan Nawaf Ahmad Al-Maliki called on PTI chief Imran Khan at Mr Khan’s Banigala residence and congratulated him on behalf of the Saudi government for success in the general elections.

Published in Dawn, July 28th, 2018