Country can't withstand another crisis: Nawaz

PML-N President Nawaz Sharif has reportedly warned that the country cannot afford to become embroiled in another constitutional or political crisis, as he discussed the prevailing political situation with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at Jati Umrah on Sunday. The reported remarks came during the Sharif family's weekly meeting, which assumed added significance amid political turbulence, contempt of court proceedings against the prime minister, and the growing controversy over the government's handling of former PM Imran Khan's medical treatment. According to media reports, Nawaz Sharif inquired from Shehbaz Sharif why Imran, who is incarcerated, was taken to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) instead of Shifa International Hospital, as directed by the Supreme Court in its August 18 order. The prime minister reportedly briefed his elder brother on the circumstances surrounding the decision. The two brothers also discussed the government's possible response to the contempt proceedings moved by the PTI before the Supreme Court over alleged non-compliance with the apex court's order. Nawaz, who has served as the country's prime minister thrice, was quoted as stressing that Pakistan could not afford another constitutional or political crisis. Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz also attended the weekly meeting. The meeting came at a particularly sensitive time for the government, with the SC order regarding Imran's medical treatment having developed into a wider institutional issue. The PTI has accused the government of failing to comply with the order after Imran was taken to Pims rather than Shifa International Hospital. In the contempt plea, the PTI has named PM Shehbaz, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar and others as respondents. The reported discussion also carries weight in view of Pakistan's history of confrontations between elected governments and the judiciary. A former prime minister from the PPP, Yousuf Raza Gilani, was sent home by the SC in a contempt case, while Nawaz himself was removed from office during his third tenure following a Supreme Court ruling. The Sharif brothers also reportedly discussed the emerging opposition alliance and political developments in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, including possible names for the offices of AJK prime minister and speaker. A senior PML-N leader said the government had reasons to exercise caution, particularly in view of the composition of the SC bench that issued the August 18 order and the nature of the directions issued by it. "There are matters that are making our government a bit uneasy," he said. PML-N Information Secretary Marriyum Aurangzeb was reached via a message for her response to the reportage of the meeting, but she chose not to respond. Senior PML-N leader Javed Latif, on the other hand, dispelled the impression of any threat to his party's government, stating that past the midway point of any government's tenure, opposition parties usually go on the front foot to rally support for the upcoming general elections. Regarding the August 18 court order, he said, in his view, the PML-N government should not have waited for any court order for proper treatment, but once the order was given, it should have been implemented in letter and spirit. He, however, blamed PTI for trying to politicise the matter.