LAHORE(National Times)- The raging war of words between PML-N and PML-Q leaders took another turn on Wednesday when the Punjab information minister called on Federal Minister for Overseas Pakistanis Chaudhry Salik Hussain to relinquish his ministerial portfolio, rather than criticising Maryam Nawaz’s provincial government, while being a part of the PML-N-led federal government.
Salik subsequently shot back, accusing Azma Bokhari of ‘spoiling the matter’ by launching a verbal attack on him, even as he was trying to mend fences through intermediaries in the federal cabinet.
The bad blood between the Punjab chief minister and the PML-Q leader was sparked when the latter levelled allegations of corruption against the provincial chief executive, and alleged discrimination in the award of development funds, which he — and other members of his extended family — claimed had deprived Gujrat of the kind of development it saw during the tenure of Parvez Elahi.
The PML-Q currently holds two ministerial positions in the ruling coalition — with Salik in the federal cabinet and his elder brother, Shafay, in the Punjab cabinet. The latter has so far maintained a cautious stance, refraining from publicly criticising the provincial administration.
Accusing Salik of practising “hypocritical politics”, Ms Bokhari wondered on Wednesday what he was trying to achieve by alleging corruption in the Punjab government, while simultaneously seeking development funds from it.
She said the federal minister’s remarks suggested that he had “lost his senses”.
Salik was behaving less like a member of the influential Chaudhry family and more like someone indulging in street-level bickering. Those who resorted to insulting women, she added, could hardly claim to uphold political decorum.
Ms Bokhari also questioned his failure to respond to the defamation notice issued by CM Maryam, noting that a week had passed without any reply.
“If he cannot respond to the notice, he should resign from his ministerial positions and go home,” she said, challenging him to leave the government and sit on the opposition benches.
“How can someone keep singing the tune of corruption and, at the same time, demand funds? How does one practise such double standards in politics?” she asked.
Another PML-N stalwart and an aide to the PM on political affairs, Rana Sanaullah, also weighed in, saying that Salik’s remarks about corruption in the Punjab government reflected the “bad company” he had been keeping.
‘Spoilt the matter’
For his part, Salik has not only stuck to his guns, but also doubled down on several accusations. In an interview broadcast on Geo News on Wednesday, he blamed Ms Bokhari’s previous outburst against him for derailing an attempt at mending fences through a colleague in the federal cabinet.
However, he complained that neither Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, nor any other senior PML-N leader had contacted the PML-Q to discuss the escalating dispute.
“I had explained the context of my interview to Federal Information Minister Atta Tarar. Before he could mend things, a Punjab minister spoiled the matter by launching a verbal attack on us,” he said, adding that he had not directly levelled corruption allegations against the chief minister.
He also accused the Punjab CM of making “below the belt” remarks about his family and vowed to contest her Rs5 billion defamation suit.
“This is the first time in Pakistan’s history that a sitting chief executive of a province has filed a defamation suit against someone… I will not retract my statement, as the chief minister has hurt my self-respect,” Mr Salik said.
He also lashed out at the chief minister for accusing his family of “corruption”, saying: “Maryam Nawaz should ask her father about our family.”
