Islamabad, Feb 13 (PTI) In a further setback to jailed former prime minister Imran Khan, an independent lawmaker backed by his party on Tuesday joined the PML-N led by ex-premier Nawaz Sharif.
Barrister Aqeel Malik, who won as Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) backed independent candidate from National Assembly Constituency NA-54, joined the Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) in the presence of party president and former prime minister Shehbaz Sharif.
“Barrister Aqeel Malik met with former Prime Minister and President of PML-N Shehbaz Sharif. He expressed full confidence in Quaid Muhammad Nawaz Sharif and Shahbaz Sharif,” said a post on X by the handle of the PML-N president.
During the meeting, Malik was accompanied by PML-N leader Haji Umar Farooq.
Senator Ishaq Dar, Khawaja Saad Rafiq, Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan, Maryam Aurangzeb, Attaullah Tarar and Khawaja Imran Nazir were also present at the meeting.
Further in the post on X, Shehbaz Sharif thanked Barrister Malik for joining PML-N.
“You took the path of serving Pakistan and the people,” he was quoted as saying in the post.
According to the post, during the meeting, Malik said that he was happy that the trust of Nawaz Sharif had been handed over to him.
“I was a Muslim League before, I am still a Muslim League,” Malik said.
Malik’s move to join PML-N came a few days after a total of six independent candidates, two from the National Assembly and four lawmakers from provincial assemblies, joined PML-N after Pakistan saw a fractured mandate.
Sardar Shamshir Mazari from NA 189, Imran Akram from PP 195, Sohail Khan from PP 240, Khizr Hussain Mazari from PP 297, and Sahibzada Mohammad Gazin Abbasi from PP 249 were among those who met Nawaz Sharif and Shehbaz Sharif, the President of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) posted on X on Monday.
On Sunday, PTI-backed independent candidate Wasim Qadir joined PML-N.
Pakistani voters gave a fractured mandate in the results of the February 8 polls.
Independent candidates, mostly backed by jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s PTI party, won 101 seats in the 266-member National Assembly, followed by former three-time prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) with 75 seats, and former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari’s Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) with 54 seats. PTI RUP AKJ RUP
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