Nawaz is ready to talk to institutions for democracy sake

ISLAMABAD: Ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif on Thursday said all the parties sitting in Parliament should bring an amendment regarding the powers of the caretaker governments.

Talking to media inside and outside the accountability court hearing NAB references against him, Nawaz said, “The powers of the caretaker prime minister and chief ministers are not clearly defined in the Constitution. It is necessary that these powers should be defined in clear terms,”

The former prime minister said he was ready to sit and talk with every political party and institution for democracy and rule of law. “I need nothing for myself but for this country,” he added.

To a question that a certain doctrine is under discussion these days, Nawaz said all the institutions should work within their constitutional limits.

When asked about the harassment caused to the Pakistani diplomats in New Delhi, he said, “It is sad but this has been going on since decades. It is a ‘tit for tat’ situation. It happens here as well. Such things are not practiced in any civilised country of the world.”

About tension at the Line of Control, Nawaz said the issue must be resolved.

During the chat with media persons, the ousted premier pointed out the contradictions in the country. “There are many contradictions in this country. Former chief justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry was dragged on the road from hair. The Supreme Court judges were detained in their houses but no contempt notices were issued to anyone. This Wajid Zia during investigation of the treason case used to wait for hours standing outside Gen Musharraf’s house in Chak Shehzad and Musharraf not allowed him to meet. On the contrary, I as a prime minister appeared before the joint investigation team (JIT).”

To a question whether the PML-N will talk to the PPP for caretaker government, Nawaz said he was disappointed from the character shown by the PPP, adding that there would be on consultations with the PPP on the caretaker setup. “Bilawal is saying that the PML-N destroyed the Charter of Democracy (CoD). I would say not the PML-N but the national reconciliation ordinance (NRO) destroyed the CoD. What’s the use of CoD when you don’t have to act upon it,” he questioned.

Talking about the Pakistan Super League (PSL), Nawaz said it became possible due to his personal interest and also hard work done by Shahbaz Sharif and noted that the PSL had created a good image of Pakistan at international level.

He said during his tenure, economic indicators were improving but the July 28 judgment created chaos in the country.