LAHORE - The sudden surge in the election campaign-like public meetings by Prime Minster Muhammad Nawaz Sharif and the PTI Chairman Imran Khan indicates a huge activity on the political landscape in the days to come wherein the PML-N and the PTI are likely to be the key characters.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and the PTI Chairman Imran Khan are scathingly targeting each other at the public meetings mainly over the Panama leaks issue wherein names of prime minister’s children as running offshore companies have been surfaced. The opposition parties on this issue had initially kept immense pressure on the government which appears defused to a degree for the reason, the main component on the rival side PPP had diluted its position against the government. In this scenario, the PTI had hinted at leading any move on the street while government is not ready to give it a free hand to achieve the purpose.

The prime minister, before leaving for London for his medical check-up, had been busy in addressing public meetings mainly in Khyber PK where the PTI government is in power. Imran Khan is also keeping pace with his protest movement which, in view of the political observers, aims at keeping the political heat high on Panama leaks issue as well as to level ground for future political alignment in the country. The AJK election campaign is another feature providing opportunity to the PTI to grill the Sharifs on Panama.

The PPP, the main opposition party with equal hostile stance against the government on Panama issue, is being totally ignored by the prime minister in his diatribe before the public which has yielded the impression as if his tirade is PTI-specific and objects to defeat the panic created by this party on Panama issue. Wherever the PM spoke, he announced huge development projects for the local people while at Bannu and DI Khan rallies, he was accompanied by the JUI-F leadership which has long set eyes on Khyber PK government.

Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Senator Pervaiz Rashid, while talking to this scribe, dispelled the impression that prime minister’s public addresses were aimed at overcoming any sort of panic on Panama issue or they were anything unusual. He said the PML-N track record would show that whenever the PM opened or laid foundation of development projects, he addressed the public gathering as a matter of sharing their feelings and taking them into confidence on the government policies. So there was no point in misconstruing his public addresses as a means to target any political party, however, he reserved the right to respond to the remarks which rivals uttered about him and his government. “This is PM’s democratic right to reply to rivals criticism,” he said adding, “The recent days rallies are prescheduled so they are not unusual.”

Rashid said it was not government, but the rivals who were chasing the PM in public rallies, therefore, fear was on their part and not the PML-N.

The federal minister further said when the government and the opposition were near formation of a joint committee to work out terms of reference (ToRs), it is better wait for the committee decision instead of speaking negatively against the government.

On the other side, the PTI rallies aimed at mobilising the public for a solo flight against the PML-N government about which an indication has already been given by the party Chairman Imran Khan to hold the ruling men accountable.

Senior leader of the PTI Hamid Khan says his party has a very strict stand on corruption in the country and this time round, the revelations against the ruling family has been made by an international organisation. Firstly, the party head wants to let the people know that how grave and dangerous the corruption is for a country particularly when it is practised by the men in power. Secondly, the PTI rallies purport to get the masses ready if need arises to come out on roads in case they fail to forge a greater alliance of the opposition or do not get justice from the judicial commission, Hamid Khan added.

As to PM rallies, they too are not without political purpose. Political analysts say the government-organised rallies are clearly designed to counter the tirade of Imran Khan, level counter allegations and expose the PTI government in Khyber PK. By doing so it would be able to fail the rivals in building pressure on it or gather larger political support to lead a grand alliance on the issue. Given the situation when the PPP has set limits on going against the government, the PTI can pose a serious challenge to the government on the Panama leaks. Therefore, it would be better for the ruling side to give little space to the PTI to woo the people.

The PTI chairman in the rallies is speaking more openly and strongly against prime minister on the Panama issue and is also not sparing others who are allied with the Sharifs. His diatribe is also overwhelmingly on the PML-N government performance. On the other hand, the government has not yielded to their demands although the committee to work out ToRs has been set up. The prime minister on his return from abroad on May 27, will resume holding of public rallies, starting with Yaum-e-Takbeer gathering, therefore, a political flurry is in the sight in the days to come, they add.