ISLAMABAD, July 25: Pakistan Muslim League-Q president Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain and Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Ellahi met President Gen Pervez Musharraf here on Friday and discussed the “prevailing political environment in the country.”

The meeting was held a day before the government-opposition talks on the Legal Framework Order.

An official announcement said: “They discussed with the president the prevailing political environment in the country as well as the forthcoming government-opposition parleys on various political issues.”

After his meeting with the president, the PML-Q chief held a lengthy meeting with the prime minister on Friday night.

President Musharraf informed the PML-Q chief of his views on the contentious issue of LFO, including his uniform.

Contrary to what Prime Minister Jamali is saying about the LFO, and going to the opposition parties in an effort to broker a deal between them and President Gen Pervez Musharraf, Chaudhry Shujaat is opposing the idea of holding talks on whether or not the president should continue holding both the offices of the president and the COAS.

President Musharraf is on record as saying that he was open to discussions on the contentious issue of LFO, including his uniform, but Chaudhry Shujaat is issuing statements, almost on a daily basis, that the issue of president’s uniform would not be discussed with the opposition. The ruling party sources told Dawn that Chaudhry Shujaat also discussed the differences within the PML-Q ranks with the president.

He made a specific mention of PML-Q meeting in which the prime minister reportedly threatened to resign after he was criticized for showing haste in convening the meeting.

The PML-Q meeting was not attended by the Punjab chief minister, clearly giving a message that they were not supporting the prime minister on his overtures to the opposition parties on the LFO.

These sources said that Chaudhry Shujaat was also not happy with Prime Minister Jamali for suggesting to two chief ministers, and a number of federal ministers, to retain either the party office or the public office.

Punjab chief minister is one of those who are violating the Political Parties Order 2002 by holding both the party and public offices simultaneously. If the law is put in force, he can be disqualified as a legislator.

An announcement by the PM office presented a picture of perfect harmony. According to it, Chaudhry Shujaat, who met the PM, expressed satisfaction over the decisions taken in the party’s central working committee meeting on Thursday, and assured the premier that all the decisions will be implemented.

The statement said that the PML-Q chief also appreciated the resolutions passed by the party’s working committee.

The handout said the PML-Q chief welcomed the prime minister’s meeting with the opposition parties and expressed the hope that the talks on the LFO would lead to resolution of all political problems, and that democracy would flourish as a result.

It said that Chaudhry Shujaat appreciated the prime minister’s efforts at resolving the dispute on the LFO, and hoped that political problems would be solved through dialogue.

The prime minister said that he would take all the decisions in consultation with the allied parties.

An official of the PM office said that it was incorrect that the prime minister went to the residence of Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain before he went to see the president.