Bilawal summons PPP CEC meeting amid tensions with PML-N

Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari has convened a meeting of the party’s Central Executive Committee (CEC) on October 18 to take “important decisions” amid ongoing tensions with coalition partner Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).

According to a statement posted on X, the meeting will discuss “important decisions regarding national politics.” The move follows a series of exchanges between the PPP and the PML-N’s Punjab leadership over flood compensation and water rights related to the Cholistan canals project.

The PPP leadership has expressed frustration over remarks by Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, whose party heads the federal government. On Tuesday, PPP Vice President Senator Sherry Rehman warned that cooperation in the Senate would be difficult without her party’s “clear support.” She said the CEC would decide whether the PPP would sit on the opposition benches.

Amid growing discord, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Asif Ali Zardari have stepped in to defuse tensions, while Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi has been urged to facilitate reconciliation.

Meanwhile, Adviser to the Prime Minister Rana Sanaullah has called on both parties to resolve their differences, saying there would be “no interference” from the establishment, which would “only assist” if political leaders chose dialogue.