Opposition leader in the Punjab Assembly Mian Mehmood-ur-Rasheed met with Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif at Model Town on Friday and held consultation regarding caretaker Chief Minister of Punjab. Sources said the meeting held in a cordial atmosphere and both of them agreed to hold another meeting on Monday to finalise the name.
After the meeting, Mehmood-ur-Rasheed expressed optimism that the name of caretaker chief minister will be decided with mutual consent of the government and opposition. He said other political parties have also been taken into confidence in this regard. The sources claimed that Mehmood-ur-Rasheed had proposed the name of former chief secretary Punjab Kamran Rasool after taking PTI chief Imran Khan into confidence. The name of former bureaucrat Safder Mehmood was also under consideration but it was dropped, the sources told. Speaker Punjab Assembly Rana Muhammad Iqbal Khan, Law Minister Rana Sanaullah and Deputy Opposition Leader Sardar Sibtain Khan were also present on the occasion.
On the other hand, the matter of caretaker prime minister is likely to be discussed in the parliamentary committee as the government and opposition have failed to decide any name for the slot. Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi had expressed hope to finalize the name for caretaker PM on Monday after having meeting with Opposition Leader Khursheed Shah. However, no consensus is likely to be developed between both the leaders.