Doves are optimistic

ISLAMABAD- Once again Pakistan Peoples Party Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari and Pakistan Muslim League(Nawaz) Quaid Mian Nawaz Sharif will be meeting here on Tuesday(today) with little shift in their declared position on judges restoration issue, but still doves in both parties are optimistic that coalition will remain intact. The sources in the coalition government are of the view that as the damage due to coalition break up would be colossal for both the parties, Mian Nawaz Sharif and Asif Ali Zardari would avoid pushing the things to a point of no return. The sources further disclosed that both Mian Nawaz Sharif and Asif Ali Zardari know that in case of coalition's break up, the ultimate beneficiary would be President Musharraf, who in one way or the other is persona non grata for both coalition leaders.   The doves in both the parties sound optimistic about the meeting and hope that the coalition would remain intact, as both the leaders had committed time and again that they would go an extra mile to save the coalition. However, the sources in the PML-N disclosed to The Nation that it was the consensus view of the party's CWC and Parliamentary Party meeting that if PPP did not come to terms (with them) on judges restoration issue, then PML-N MPs would ask for provision of separate benches in the National Assembly. They could extend support to the PPP coalition government for the sake of democracy but completely dissociate themselves from government decision-making. These sources further disclosed that in Tuesday meeting PML-N team would comprise Mian Nawaz Sharif, Mian Shahbaz Sharif, Kh. Asif, Ishaq Dar and Ch. Nisar Ali Khan who is arriving here from London on the direction of the party Quaid on Tuesday morning. The political analysts said that it were the one-on-one meetings between Asif Ali Zardari and Mian Nawaz Sharif, which had served as the magic wand to keep the four parties alliance intact in the past. They added that they were to see whether it will happen again in the Tuesday's meeting at Zardari House. On the other hand the hardliners in both these parties were terming it a make or break meeting. Such elements in PML-N were terming the leniency shown by Mian Nawaz Sharif was causing the party irreparable loss to its popularity in the masses while in PPP the hawks were of the view that PPP should settle the dispute with PML-N and in case PML-N decides to part ways with them, they should go for other options to form government minus N-League MPs. The sources privy to the coalition government disclosed that Mian Nawaz Sharif and his team would be going to Zardari House with a roadmap on a number of issues, including restoration of the judges, impeachment of President, annulment of 17th Constitutional amendment and introduction of the constitutional reforms aimed at giving the political dispensation a true character of Parliamentary form of government. Some political analysts who are closely monitoring the developments on national political horizon, were of the view that the upcoming meeting between the two was unlikely to bring some major breakthrough as both the parties were sticking to their point of view on the main issues that is restoration of judges and impeachment of President. The sources further disclosed that PML-N could furnish their reply on the constitutional package floated by the Pakistan Peoples Party in case Pakistan Peoples Party agree to segregate the judges restoration issue from the rest of the reforms proposed by the PPP in 82-point document. But the sources close to PPP were of the view that PPP was not ready to show flexibility on the subject and the legal wizards of PPP were adamant that the judges could only be restored through constitutional amendment and not by an executive order as demanded by Pakistan Muslim League(Nawaz). Keeping in view the unflinching position of PPP and PML-N on the divergent viewpoints they had taken on judges restoration and impeachment of President, there were little chances of some major breakthrough in the meeting between Mian Nawaz Sharif and Asif Ali Zardari. Though Mian Nawaz Shairf had time and again said that his party would not let the Punjab Government become its Achilles' heel and would not hesitate for a minutes to leave Punjab Government on judges' restoration issue. But some insiders in the party disclosed to The Nation that PML-N leadership wanted to keep the Punjab Government in their hands at all costs otherwise Mian Nawaz Sharif would be the last man to see dictatorial forces gaining strength in case the coalition breakup. Similarly Pakistan Peoples Party would not like a situation where they have to take the support of Q-League, whom the party Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari had termed a "Qatil League", to keep their government intact at the centre. In such a situation PPP have to go for more compromises with the powers that that be but not to the extent of making President Musharraf all-powerful. So the sources believed that despite all the odds, PPP and PML-N would go extramile to keep the coalition intact and both sides would search for some common ground to get out of the prevailing impasse on the judges and other issues.

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