Those who made party rifts public to face action: Nawaz

LAHORE: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Saturday vowed to take strict action against those who had made the differences within the ruling party, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), public and advised the disgruntled elements to contact the party leadership if they had any misgivings.
He expressed anger over the differences among senior PML-N leaders saying it would weaken the party and provide an opportunity to the opponents for criticism, sources said.
According to sources, the prime minister warned of taking strict action against those discussing party affairs in the media and said anyone having misgivings should contact the party leadership.
On the occasion, he tasked Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif with ending the differences among the PML-N leaders. Nawaz made it clear that those weakening the party and strengthening rivals would not be spared.
He was addressing a high-level meeting in Raiwind. Minister for Railways Khawaja Saad Rafiq, Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal, MNA Hamza Shahbaz Sharif, Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan, Minister for Excise and Taxation Mujtaba Shuja-ur-Rehman and heads of different federal and provincial departments attended the meeting.
Sources say the prime minister was unhappy over the NA-122 by-election result and the defeat of the party candidate in PP-147. On this, Saad Rafique remarked that the PTI candidate, Aleem Khan, used excessive money in his campaign.
He noted that despite the fact that dozens of political and religious parties, including the JI, had supported the PTI, the PML-N remained victorious in the NA-122 by-poll.
Rana Sana said although Aleem was a strong candidate using a lot of money, he had been defeated.
Nawaz said the people of NA-122 had again shown their love for the PML-N, adding that the promises made with them during the campaign should be fulfilled on a priority basis.
The meeting also discussed awarding party tickets for the local government polls and the clash between Rana Sana and Chaudhry Sher Ali. The provincial law minister, on the occasion, shared his reservations with Nawaz Sharif who directed to resolve mutual issues through dialogue instead of holding press conferences. He held a consultation with the participants on how to end the differences between the two party leaders.
During the meeting, the prime minister emphasised the need for initiating development projects equally catering to the people of both the urban and rural areas.
“It is necessary to provide equal facilities and opportunities of development and progress to the people of both areas. For this purpose, small and large projects should be commenced simultaneously along with infrastructural development,” he said.
He expressed satisfaction over the fact that the government was undertaking development projects of high utility at a fast pace which would usher in a new era of prosperity and development in the near future.
The prime minister was briefed on the law and order situation and the security measures taken in Punjab regarding maintaining peace during Muharram, besides the upcoming local government elections and various development programmes.
Shahbaz informed the prime minister about the measures being taken to provide clean drinking water to the people of the province. He shared the details of the ‘Saaf Paani Scheme’ which was nearing completion in all the districts of Punjab.
He also briefed the premier about the provision of education and health facilities to the citizens and highlighted the mega projects which were going to contribute to the overall development of the province in a big way.
The chief minister said the provincial government was also giving special attention to the development of roads which would not only generate economic activity at the village level but also link the urban and rural areas for mutual benefit.
At the same time, he said, the government was executing development projects which would pay off both in the short and long terms.
The prime minister expressed satisfaction over the progress made in the ongoing projects and appreciated the steps taken by the Punjab government to maintain balanced development in the rural and urban areas.