LAHORE: The Jahangir Tareen Group (JTG) here on Thursday announced to disassociate themselves from the provincial ministers who met Prime Minister Imran Khan.

It may be mentioned that the group had boycotted the parliamentary party meeting called by the Prime Minister.

While talking to media after the conclusion of the group meeting, JTG’s spokesperson Saeed Akbar Nawani said that Asif Nikai and Akhtar Malik met the Prime Minister, but they were never a part of the group, and the same applies for Samsam Bukhari and Hashim Dogar who were also not the members of the group. “As per the directives of their leader, former Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) general secretary Jahangir Tareen, they had decided not to meet the Prime Minister,” he added.

Nawani said that the Prime Minister was listening to his advisors who were not loyal to the party. “Time will prove that the principle stance of the group was in favour of the party. “We all joined the group in reservation against the party policies. The group members believe that Tareen was sidelined after the party came into power. We did intimate our concerns to the PM in the previous meeting, which were later proven to be true. We are now again raising similar issues, but the government is not willing to listen to us,” he added.

He complained that the government had closed the business of JKT group leader Ajmal Cheema but it should know that it could not suppress their voices. “We are closely monitoring the changing political scenario in the country and will make decisions accordingly,” he added.

Meanwhile, PTI senior leader Abdul Aleem Khan has distanced himself from yesterday’s decision of the Tareen group, saying that no member of Punjab was barred from attending the PM’s meeting.

It may be mentioned that on the issue of meeting the Prime Minister, the Tareen group was divided and the Aleem Khan faction refused to accept the decision of the Tareen group. According to the spokesperson of Aleem Khan, their members took permission from Aleem Khan to attend the meeting. They will decide the future course of action through mutual consultation, he added. He denied the reports that they are against the minus-Buzdar option in Punjab. The group wants a change of Chief Minister and the matter will be taken up with the Prime Minister during the meeting, he added.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022