LAHORE (National Times) – PTI Chairman Imran Khan has called a meeting of the patry s senior leadership to deliberate on the move to return to the National Assembly to ensure that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif failed to seek trust vote.

The meeting would be held later in the day at Mr Khan’s Zaman Park residence to formulate a strategy to give a tough time to Shehbaz Sharif and stop dissident PTI leaders from giving the vote of confidence to the premier.

The meeting would also discuss a plan to remove PTI dissident Raja Riaz from the position of the parliamentary party leader in the National Assembly as his decision would be crucial during the trust vote.

A day earlier, Mr Khan, in a meeting with media persons, dropped a hint of his party’s return to the assembly as PTI feared that Mr Riaz could decide in favour of the government if President Arif Alvi ask him to take the trust vote.

Raja Riaz leads the group of dissident PTI MNAs who did not comply with the party directives to resign from the assembly following the ouster of Mr Khan through a no-confidence vote in April last.

The PTI might send its legislators, more than the number of PTI dissidents, to the lower house of the parliament to check the lawmakers elected on the tickets of the Imran Khan-led party.

Reports said the decision of Riaz might be effective as it would take a time to remove him as parliamentary leader.