PPP co-chairman and former president, Asif Ali Zardari, on Thursday invited Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman to Larkana to attend a rally scheduled on Dec 27, the death anniversary of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto.

A statement issued by the PPP said the former president made a telephone call to Fazl, who is also president of the 11-party opposition alliance, known as the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM).

Both leaders exchanged views on the current political situation in the country, including the ongoing anti-government protest movement from the PDM's platform. During the call, Zardari invited the JUI-F chief to Larkana for a rally planned on the death anniversary of Benazir Bhutto, the statement said.

The PPP will hold a rally on Dec 27 in Garhi Khuda Bux as part of its annual commemoration of the martyrdom of Benazir Bhutto. PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari had also previously invited leaders of the PDM to attend the event.

The PPP Sindh leadership remains confident about the Dec 27 rally expecting all key leaders of the PDM in Garhi Khuda Bux, a small village in Larkana where the Bhutto mausoleum is located.

PPP Sindh President Nisar Ahmed Khuhro said PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz and other leaders of the PDM were expected to participate in the rally.

Speaking at a press conference, Khuhro said that “this year’s rally would be [a] massive one and we expect a huge turnout of people on the day.”

The telephone conversation between the two politicians comes as the opposition alliance moves ahead with the second phase of its movement to oust the government.

The PDM has demanded the PTI-led government quit by January 31 or face an intensified opposition movement, including a long march to the capital and en masse resignations from the provincial and national assemblies.

A day earlier, the PDM had pledged that they would carry on their agitation till the PTI government was sent home and criticised what they called poor governance and its anti-people policies.