ISLAMABAD-The fragile coalition government of Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) and Pakistan Peoples Party in Punjab suffered a major setback when PML(N) Quaid came out with a statement that his party had been asking PPP to walk out of the coalition government since they (PML-N) stepped out of the Federal Cabinet. The things in Punjab remained confused for quite some time after the break-up of PML(N)-PPP alliance at federal level over the restoration of superior judiciary when the latter had refused to honour their commitment but the coalition in Punjab had survived as both sides avoided any showdown in the province keeping in view their political interests. But now, after the PML(N) Quaid Mian Nawaz Sharif's clear-cut statement that they had been asking Pakistan Peoples Party to walk out of the Punjab Cabinet, little room for PPP was left to stay part of the Punjab Government. The political observers were according great significance to the statement of PML(N) Quaid as it was for the first time since the break-up of the PML(N)-PPP alliance at federal level that the PML(N) top man had said that PPP should walk out of Punjab Cabinet. Earlier the statements of this nature were coming from the junior leadership of the party and Pakistan Peoples Party leadership averted it by saying that they would quit the Punjab Cabinet when any of the Mian brothers asks them to do so. They further came up with the arguments that they were part of the Punjab Government as they did not want to destabilize PML(N) government and the day they quit the alliance the PML(N) would not be in a position to stay in power. But at the time of Presidential elections, though PPP Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari won the elections with thumping majority, PML(N) had proved that their government in Punjab could survive without the support of PPP as their presidential candidate Justice(Retd) Saeeduz Zaman Siddiqui bagged some 201 votes in the house of 371 some 15 votes more than required to prove their simple majority in the house. After the presidential elections, the demand from some hawkish elements, like Ch Nisar Ali Khan and Ch Ehsan Iqbal in the PML(N), and some others from PPP, to quit the Punjab Cabinet, started coming forcefully, but the party President Mian Shahbaz Sharif kept a sobre silence over the issue. The sources in the Pakistan People's Party disclosed that at one stage,in order to take heat out of the ever-growing demand to quit Punjab government, the party Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari had sent a message through Senior Minister in Punjab Cabinet Raja Raiz to Mian Shahbaz Sharif that if they desire the PPP ministers in Punjab would walk out of the cabinet. Mian Shahbaz Sharif however said that he did not want them to leave the cabinet, and that their performance would be monitored in future, the condition the PPP cabinet members agree with. The relations between PML(N) and PPP, which got strained after the break-up of the coalition government at federal level, but remained intact in the province, survived a number of political jerks and jolts over the past several months, but  both sides suspected each other despite the fact that they were jointly running the government in the province. The PPP legislators, with the patronage of their loyalist Governor Punjab, were always seen with suspicion by their leading coalition partner and likewise each and every move by the Punjab Chief Minister Mian Shahbaz Sharif was taken as a conspiracy against the PPP interests in the province. The sources privy to the developments taking place in the province over the past few months were of the view that this strange relationship could not last for long and finally they have to bid goodbye to each other. It was in the backdrop of these murky relations between the two that the delay in expansion in the Punjab cabinet was taken as the conspiracy on part of the PML(N) to keep the PPP deprived of their due share in governance while on the other hand any move by Governor Punjab against the Punjab Government was taken as the move on part of PPP to destabilize the PML(N) government. It was because of this suspicion that PML(N) had wooed the support of some 36 Q-League MPAs, some of whom had also voted for their presidential candidate so that any attempt to dislodge their government in the province could be defeated successfully. Now, after keeping silence for quite some time, Mian Nawaz Sharif had come up with a provocative statement against the PPP. Only time would tell whether it would lead to another ugly tug of war between the two estranged political allies which had shown a lot of political maturity since PML-N stepped out of the Federal Cabinet.