Lahore
\nFormer Punjab chief minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi on Tuesday announced that he was joining the PTI along with ten other former MPAs of the Pakistan Muslim Leaque-Quaid (PML-Q). Addressing a press conference in Lahore alongside PTI Vice President Fawad Chaudhry, Elahi said he had always stood with former prime minister Imran Khan during \u201chard and testing times\u201d.
\n\u201cParvez Elahi is quitting the PML-Q and is joining the PTI,\u201d Chaudhry confirmed. Chaudhry said Elahi also met the PTI chairman in this regard, adding that the party \u201cappreciates\u201d the role played by the PML-Q.
\n\u201cParvez Elahi has the support of Moonis Elahi and Hussain Elahi too,\u201d he said. \u201cThere were two options. Either merge the PML-Q with PTI or they join PTI.\u201d
\nChaudhry welcomed the new PTI members to the party. On the occasion, he also highlighted that no one knew the whereabouts of Zaigham Khan and Muhammad Khan Bhatti so far.
\n\u201cWe will stand together with the new PTI members,\u201d he said, adding that Elahi\u2019s name had been approved for the role of PTI\u2019s central president.
\nTalking to the media, Elahi lashed out at Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for shutting down the health card.
\nElahi said no such step would be taken that harms the PTI\u2019s reputation, adding that he will work \u201cwherever Imran wishes\u201d for him to.
\nResponding to a question pertaining to if he was given a hint by the establishment to join PTI, Elahi said: \u201cIf the establishment has given a hint, it\u2019s good. I try that everyone moves along together.\u201d
\nElahi earlier visited and held a meeting with Imran at his Zaman Park residence that was attended by senior party leaders from both sides.
\nElahi had on January 15 addressed a possible merger of the PML-Q with the PTI and said his party\u2019s decision would surface after their consultative meeting to thrash out the proposal.
\nAt another point, Elahi was more candid in his response, saying his son Moonis Elahi also wanted both parties to merge and proceed in politics with a consensus. \u201cAny such merger will strengthen the party,\u201d Elahi had said.
\nA day later on Jan 16, PML-Q President Chaudhry Shujaat had sent a show-cause notice to Elahi and suspended his membership over his comments regarding the party\u2019s possible merger with the PTI.
\nIt said that the PML-Q, as a political party, has its own identity, vote bank, party discipline and manifesto \u2014 which were all violated by Elahi\u2019s comments. \u201cIf any of them wanted to join another party then they should relinquish their positions and resign, otherwise the PML-Q would have no other option but to approach the Election Commission of Pakistan to de-seat them,\u201d it had added.
\nOn the other hand, the PML-Q electoral college office-bearers had authorised Elahi, the party\u2019s provincial president at the time, to take decisions on behalf of the party with regard to its merger with the PTI on Imran\u2019s offer.<\/p>\n
Differences in PML-Q ranks
\nDifferences in the PML-Q ranks first appeared in March last year around the time of the no-confidence motion against Imran as Parvez and Moonis Elahi entered the PTI camp while Shujaat joined the then-opposition.
\nThe same split was witnessed in July\u2019s Punjab chief minister election saga as Shujaat supported the candidature of PML-N\u2019s Hamza Shehbaz instead of Parvez.
\nAmid a widening rift between the Chaudhrys of Gujrat, Shujaat had extended an olive branch in August to Parvez, asking him to put an end to differences.
\nThe PML-Q leader had talked in detail about the reasons that led to discord between him and Parvez. He, however, had called for the reunion of the party that split into two camps following the rift over the election of the Punjab CM.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Lahore Former Punjab chief minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi on Tuesday announced that he was joining the PTI along with ten other former MPAs of the Pakistan Muslim Leaque-Quaid (PML-Q). Addressing a press conference in Lahore alongside PTI Vice President Fawad Chaudhry, Elahi said he had always stood with former prime minister Imran Khan during \u201chard […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":315168,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-315155","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-top-news"},"yoast_head":"\n