DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Feb 8: Pakistan People’s Party Central Executive Committee has approved the programme for the return of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, who is expected to end her self-exile in near future.

The programme would be disclosed at an appropriate time, said PPP leader and former provincial minister Syed Qamar Abbas while talking to Dawn here on Friday. He was accompanied by PPP General-Secretary Raza Rabbani.

Qamar Abbas said the PPP had changed its policy on awarding party tickets to candidates willing to contest elections to the national and provincial assemblies. Now, the tickets would be allotted to the candidates with the approval of party workers, he added.

The PPP leader said the party high command had already approved the decision of party chairperson to return to the country before the holding of the general elections, which, he claimed, would be swept by the PPP.

Responding to a question about the future of Aftab Sherpao in the national politics, Qamar Abbas said that Mr Sherpao had lost everything, including the party, its workers and the trust reposed in him. Now, there was no room for his politics in the country, Qamar added.

To another question, Qamar Abbas said ban on religious parties and Jihadi groups was not in favour of the country.

“Religious parties and Jihadi organizations are part and parcel of our national politics and this decision seems to have been taken to keep them out of politics,” he said, adding that the religious parties were right in their opposition to the United States, as these parties viewed the US had never been sincere to Pakistan and Islam.

When asked about the future strategy of his party, Qamar Abbas said the PPP had always been demanding a transparent accountability through an independent judiciary, adding, “but our demand was not honoured.”

Raza Rabbani said that the PPP central committee had approved the statement on Kashmir given by the party chairperson and “we fully own the statement.”

He said the PPP had started preparations for the coming general elections and the central committee would announce its strategy at an appropriate time.