• Delegation set to meet Achakzai in Parliament House today
• Insiders say party harbouring grudge over AJK poll outcome, wants to give PML-N a ‘tough time’ in parliament
• Leader says PPP gets ‘all blame, no credit’ as ally
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), which has been ramping up its criticism of the ruling PML-N in recent days, has now reached out to the main opposition alliance to seek its cooperation in parliament, Dawn has learnt.
Sources told Dawn that a delegation of PPP lawmakers is expected to call on Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Mahmood Khan Achakzai today (Tuesday).
The sources said that the meeting with Mr Achakzai, who also heads the Tehreek-i-Tahaffuz Ayeen Pakistan (TTAP) alliance, has been sought to seek their cooperation during parliamentary sittings, such as for pointing out quorum.
According to party sources, the PPP delegation will consist of Syed Naveed Qamar, Sherry Rehman, Raja Pervaiz Ashraf and Saleem Mandviwala. The lawmakers are expected to meet Mr Achakzai in his Parliament House chambers.
The agenda is to work together to strengthen parliament and parliament’s committees, the sources said.
Talking to Dawn, a senior PTI leader said that it seemed the PPP was trying to “raise its value” through such moves. However, “we will support any party that talks about free and fair elections and stopping rigging through Form 47s”, the leader said.
Insiders suggest that while the PPP cannot afford to formally exit the coalition government at the Centre, it could give the government tough time to show its displeasure over the outcome of the AJK elections.
Over the past couple of weeks, several PPP leaders — including party chief Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari — had accused the ruling party of ‘rigging’ and manipulating election results.
‘All blame, no credit’
This sentiment was echoed on Monday by the party’s Punjab secretary general, Syed Hassan Murtaza, when he said: “We are allied with the PML-N, but we are not deaf and dumb. We will continue to highlight public issues and [our] reservations forcefully.”
Addressing a press conference in the capital, he said that despite being an ally of the PML-N, the party could not compromise on its basic principles of safeguarding the rights of people.
“We entered into an alliance with PML-N to protect democracy and ensure the stability of the country, for which we have paid a heavy political price,” he said.
“We are not getting credit for the government’s good initiatives, but we are bearing the brunt of its flawed policies,” he lamented.
Mr Murtaza said the PPP did not take federal ministries deliberately to avoid pressure and blackmail. “That is why when negotiations are held with the IMF on economic policies and loans, the PPP is not included and our opinion is ignored in decision-making.”
Criticising the PML-N leadership, Mr Murtaza said they were currently in Azad Kashmir “securing their own seats” in a sensitive region.
“Kashmir is an integral part of Pakistan and requires national unity, but the public mandate is being stolen there,” he said.
He also criticised the PML-N government in Punjab, saying that its performance was limited to a few roads projects and photo-ops, adding that the party had no concrete policy to provide relief to the people of the province.
Mr Murtaza also alleged that politically-motivated cases were being registered against PPP leaders and workers in Punjab. Citing an example, he claimed that an attempt was made to seize the land of PPP leader Asif Bashir Bhaghat overnight, in the presence of police. “On one hand you claim you are not doing victimisation, but ground realities say otherwise,” he said.
On the issue of new provinces, he questioned where was the consensus needed to take such a decision.
“Where there is no consensus, hold dialogue first. In a country already drowning in debt, how will we afford 30 chief ministers, 30 cabinets and 30 secretariats? The narrative of new provinces was just a ‘filler’ floated deliberately so PPP would oppose it and then be labeled anti-people,” he said.
KP speaker meets Senate chairman
Separately, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Speaker Babar Saleem Swati called on Senate Chairman Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani at his residence in Ministers’ Enclave, Islamabad, on Monday.
The two leaders discussed the prevailing political situation, regional developments and matters of mutual interest.
During the meeting, Mr Gilani emphasised the important role of the Senate as the representative forum of the federating units and a key pillar of Pakistan’s federal parliamentary system.
He said the Senate provided an effective platform for safeguarding the interests of provinces and promoting greater coordination and harmony among the federating units.
Published in Dawn, August 18th, 2026
