ISLAMABAD, Oct 29: Information Secretary of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Punjab chapter Naveed Chaudhry says Benazir Bhutto is expected to return to the country by January and the next general elections will be held in March.

Talking to Dawn on Saturday, he said the party had already started planning for the return of Ms Bhutto.

He agreed with the call of jailed president of the Alliance for Restoration of Democracy Makhdoom Javed Hashmi for the return of both Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif, adding that the country was facing a leadership crisis. He, however, said the PPP did not want to politicize the earthquake disaster by calling Ms Bhutto to arrive in Pakistan immediately.

Mr Chaudhry said the political scene was changing fast and the leadership gap had been widened, making the role of Ms Bhutto more important. He said the party chairperson was active in getting benefits for the country through her contacts with foreign donors after the earthquake.

About the government’s move to convene an all-party conference on the earthquake, he said the government should send invitations direct to Ms Bhutto and Mr Sharif if it wanted the participation of the PPP and the PML-N. It seemed that the government is only interested in having a photo session with the opposition leaders to get political mileage, he added.

“On one hand Gen Musharraf is exonerating jehadi organizations and saying that he is watching them, while on the other political leadership of the country is not being allowed to play any role and are being pushed to wall,” he said.