ISLAMABAD: Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry has said that there is neither any discussion within the party nor any possibility of early elections.
Talking to The News, the minister said that the issue of early elections has never been discussed within the party or the government. Fawad Chaudhry said there is also no possibility of such a move and explained that in light of the fast-changing and uncertain situation In Afghanistan, no one would want to go for mid-term polls in Pakistan.
Going for early polls in this scenario, he said, would mean replacing a stable government with instability at a time when Pakistan needs steady rule. Additionally, Chaudhry said some major protects of the PTI government would mature in two years’ time. Therefore, it would not be justified to go for elections without waiting for the fruition of these major projects.
If the present government completes it tenure, the next general election would be held in October-November 2023 when Justice Faez Isa would be the Chief Justice of Pakistan. Although opposition voices do talk about early elections -- probably next year--- some political observers believe that the PTI could decide to hold the next elections in early 2023 before the appointment of Justice Isa as Chief Justice of Pakistan.
When asked about this factor playing a part in the holding of elections a few months earlier, Fawad Chaudhry said that elections will be held within 45 days of the completion of the PTI’s term. He said ithis would happen before the arrival of Justice Isa.
There are unconfirmed reports about background contacts between the Pakistan People’s Party and the PML-N for an in-house change in Punjab and the centre which could lead to mid-term polls.
However, the PMLN is not inclined to go for any such political move. These issues were also discussed in the PDM when the PPP was part of it but then too the PMLN had rejected them and had pressed for en bloc resignations for which the PPP was not prepared.
After the PPP’s departure from the PDM, the PML-N is more inclined to let the present government complete its tenure. The PML-N believes that the poor performance of the PTI, particularly in Punjab, will benefit the PML-N in the next general elections.
The emergence of the Tareen factor seemed like a setback for the PTI, but in reality Imran Khan’s government remains firmly in the saddle, mainly because of the PML-N’s reluctance to hobnob with the ruling party’s dissidents.