LAHORE: In a display of a change of heart, Chief Minister Chaudhry Parvez Elahi on Sunday described the PTI’s Hasnain Bahadar Dreshak as a brilliant minister of his cabinet, saying that he would not accept his resignation as the cabinet member.

After an altercation and arguments in the sixth cabinet meeting on Dec 17, the chief minister had given a shut-up call to Dreshak, the minister for livestock and dairy development, and asked him to ‘get out’.

In a news channel interview on Dec 18, Mr Elahi himself explained that Dreshak had tendered his resignation and added, “resignation has been accepted forthwith”.

Mr Elahi had snubbed the minister in the cabinet meeting while he was attempting to speak, saying, “he should take permission before expressing views and show some discipline”.

Terms minister who faced his ire brilliant; says won’t accept his resignation

In his new statement, the chief minister said Mr Dreshak would continue performing his responsibilities as the provincial minister. Lauding the performance of the PTI’s minister, Mr Elahi said the legislator was running his ministry in a far better way.

“Sardar Hasnain Bahadar Dreshak is like my son Moonis Elahi for me,” he added.

Last week, the chief minister was infuriated and was chiding every PTI leader from Imran Khan to Fawad Chaudhry and Musarrat Jamshed Cheema for speaking against his ‘benefactor’ retired Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa. The party leadership stopped speaking against Bajwa but Mr Khan continued his tirade against the former army chief.

Sources in the PML-Q told Dawn that Mr Elahi had softened his stance as both parties were now in critical discussion of dissolving the Punjab Assembly and seat adjustments in the next general election.

They said Mr Elahi was also supposed to take a vote of confidence of all House members (PTI’s 177 and PML-Q’s 10 members) to retain his position as the chief minister.

They say every vote counts as both parties plan to go for the vote of confidence even before Jan 11 when the Lahore High Court (LHC) will take up the case of the chief minister’s removal by the governor

Published in Dawn, December 26th, 2022