QUETTA:,,, Nawab Lashkari Raisani on Wednesday said they would soon make a decision on the issue of joining the PML-N, as former prime minister Shehbaz Sharif held a meeting in Quetta with an offer to join the party.
He said they had decided to be part of the political process and the parliamentary system was the best option to solve problems faced by the country. “Nawaz Sharif knows and understands the challenges,” Raisani remarked and added that the offer to join the PML-N was a matter of honour for them.
Speaking on the occasion, PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif said he had come to meet the Raisani brothers – Aslam Raisani and Lashkari Raisani – with whom they enjoyed close relationship for the last 50 years since the time of their father – Ghous Bakhsh Khan Raisani.
Shehbaz mentioned that Raisani was nationalist in his political outlook but never resorted to carrying arms and had always remained within the political system. The Raisani brothers, he said, had decided in principle to be part of the PML-N’s politics and a final decision would be made in the coming days after further consultations [with party leaders like Sardar Ayaz Sadiq].
Nawaz was a statesman, not just a politician, he said, adding that the three-time prime minister had always remained committed to Balochistan and taken practical steps to address the problems faced by the people and the province.
Shehbaz noted that the previous [PTI] government had ruined everything and added that all the stakeholders were required to sit together and fix the mistakes made during the past 75 years. The current state of affairs demanded complete harmony, he stressed.
The visit to the elder Raisani’s Quetta residence comes just days after Lashkari held a meeting with Shehbaz in Lahore amid the ongoing political consultations led by Ayaz Sadiq who has been assigned with the task to boost the party’s chances in Balochistan by reaching out to the political leaders and elders in the province.
About the recent remarks passed by PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, he said the former foreign minister was like a little brother to him and practicing mature politics was need of the hour.
Earlier on Tuesday, Bilawal had suggested that Nawaz should remain focused on Punjab and claimed that a particular “pitch” was currently prepared, but his party was ready to play on any surface – a reference to the efforts made by the PML-N for gaining political ground in Sindh and Balochistan.