Power triangle: PM wins back estranged Nisar
By
Abdul Manan
Published: July 6, 2014
LAHORE:
After five hours of deliberations, reassurances and appeasement, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif succeeded in winning over disgruntled Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar by giving in to his key demands.
Nisar’s disagreement with Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, who is also water and power minister, had created a major rift among the leaders of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N). But on Saturday, at a meeting in Raiwind, the Sharif brothers assuaged Nisar, who then persuaded them to go about his way to deal with crunch issues, sources said.
Officials indicate that the interior minister convinced the PML-N leadership to remove Asif as defence minister and hand the portfolio to Lt Gen (retd) Abdul Qadir Baloch or someone else. The premier might even keep the defence portfolio himself, they added.
It was also resolved that on national security issues, PM Nawaz, Shahbaz Sharif and Nisar will be the three focal persons who will frame and decide policy – a move that will limit the roles of Asif and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar.
Moreover, PM Nawaz will restrict Dar within the confines of the finance ministry, and if and when the premier wants to assign him tasks other than those related to finance, they will be discussed with Nisar beforehand.
One of the main reasons for the bitterness with Dar and Khawaja Asif was the severe reservations that Nisar had over the mishandling of Pervez Musharraf’s treason trial and the defence minister’s conduct while tackling the military.
In March, Nawaz had ignored Nisar’s proposal after the special court’s judgment to let Musharraf go abroad and not agitate the military. However, the premier chose to go along with Asif’s prescribed way of going ahead with the former military ruler’s trial, sources said.
During the five-hour meeting, the three leaders discussed Musharraf’s ECL case pending in the Supreme Court and assured Nisar that the next move in pursuing the case, whether in the Supreme Court or the special court, will be decided in consultation with him.
Another issue raised by Nisar was Asif’s immediate media interview after Operation Zarb-e-Azb began in North Waziristan Agency in which he said the government had already wasted time in talks with the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan.
Officials said Nisar, along with Shahbaz Sharif, disliked his statement and apprised the prime minister about its repercussions.
The future role of Ishaq Dar was also heavily deliberated on. According to officials, Chaudhry Nisar told Nawaz that Dar had divided the party into ethnic lobbies such as ‘northern areas, central Punjab and South Punjab wings’, which tainted the leadership’s image. The finance minister also pretended to be ‘second to the prime minister’ and his decision would be regarded as final, which disheartened members of the party, complained the interior minister.
After hearing him out, the PML-N leadership also decided to minimise Dar’s role.
According to a government spokesperson, the prime minister, in conclusion, asked Nisar to resume his responsibilities and work with full dedication.
Nawaz thanked Shahbaz Sharif for bringing Nisar to him to address his grievances, while Shahbaz called the interior minister his elder brother, officials added.
The next meeting of Nawaz, Nisar and other ministers will be scheduled at the PM House soon. “The prime minister said that difference of opinion is the beauty of democracy,” the spokesman said.
During the latter part of the meeting, it was also decided that the Parliamentary Committee on Election Reform and talks with Imran Khan regarding the rigging probe of four constituencies will be steered by Shahbaz Sharif and Nisar.
The three leaders also discussed the timeline for the military operation in North Waziristan, as well as Tahirul Qadri and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s long march.
The three leaders settled on Ishaq Dar’s handling the issue of IDPs settlement and proposing a new plan for fund raising.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 6th, 2014.