LAHORE: Refusing to budge despite being served a show-cause notice for publicly criticising his senior party colleagues, PML-N’s Daniyal Aziz says he stands by his statement which, he claims, did not violate party discipline and policy.

He said this in his three-page reply responding to a show-cause notice issued by PML-N Punjab president Rana Sanaullah Khan on Dec 2, 2023.

The former federal minister from Narowal had, in a TV talk show, blamed the policies of former planning & development minister and PML-N leader Ahsan Iqbal for all the ills being faced by the country.

He had also chided the party’s information secretary Marriyum Aurangzeb for “failing” to devise a media policy to effectively respond to the “propaganda” by the rival parties.

Mr Aziz said in his response that he had talked about Mr Iqbal’s failures as planning minister and, according to the ‘rules’, the minister concerned is responsible for the economic problems.

Seeking an appointment for a meeting with the party’s central leadership to “clear misunderstandings”, he alleged that it was Mr Iqbal who violated the party discipline by holding rallies for his (Ahsan Iqbal’s) son in his (Aziz’s) constituency.

About the delay in his response to the show-cause notice that had set a 7-day deadline, he said that he was undergoing various medical procedures, so he could not reply in time.

Meanwhile, the PML-N has issued a list of its nominees for the National and Balochistan assemblies.

Meanwhile, party tickets have been announced for 15 National Assembly seats.

Those given the tickets are Nawabzada Tur Gul Jogezai (NA-251), Sardar Yakub Nasir (NA-252), Sardar Dostin Domki (NA-253), Abdul Ghafoor (NA-254), Mir Khan Muhammad Jamali (NA-255), Abdul Khaliq (NA-256), ex-chief minister Jam Kamal (NA-257), Aslam Baleedi (NA-258), Yaqub Bizenjo (NA-259), Sardar Fateh Hosni (NA- 260), Mir Attaullah Longo (NA-261), Nawab Salman Khalji (NA-262), Jamal Shah Kakar (NA-263), Haji Arz Muhammad Barich (NA-264), Saeed Allah Tareen (NA-265), and Haji Abdul Manan Durrani (NA-266).

The tickets for the provincial assembly have been issued to 45 hopefuls.

Published in Dawn, January 4th, 2024