PPP-Parliamentarians President Asif Ali Zardari on Thursday suggested that while "he cannot say whether a National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) agreement has been struck between Prime Minister Imran Khan and the PML-N, an NRO deal has definitely been reached between the federal government and the maulvis".

The former president made these remarks while talking to media representatives in Khairpur. Referring to the recently appointed PTI government which according to him "is still in its infancy", Zardari said: "An under-14 team is playing and it still remains to be seen what happens and what doesn't".

He further claimed that "just like the Nawaz government had come into power after striking a deal [with the powers that be], so has Imran Khan".

Zardari was of the view that the PTI government's attitude in the assembly was still that of the opposition, and said that in his speech on the floor of the house, he had even urged the government to play its role and leave opposition politics to them, "but nothing makes any difference to them".

Regretting the current state of affairs in Sindh, he said if the federal government would only release funds for the province, there would be no stopping the development and prosperity of the region.

"The federation only does things for its own benefit," he said, adding that the government "better change its direction and serve the people of Sindh".

He also criticised the government approaching the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for assistance, saying the people were already deeply steeped in inflation and instead of providing relief, the government was only bombarding them with further expenses.

The former president remarked that his party had also had issues with the previous (Sharif) government but "remained silent for the sake of democracy because the people's party has given sacrifices for democracy".

The Sindh government was committed to serving the people of Thar and was working towards the provision of their every basic need, he claimed.