GUJRAT: In a bid to revitalise party ranks in Gujrat, a veteran PML-N figure and former MNA Malik Haneef Awan has launched efforts by holding meetings with former party lawmakers and senior officials in the district.

Party sources said Mr Awan had initiated a series of one-on-one meetings with ex-MPs and senior leaders keeping in view future challenges the party faced in local politics.

The said everyone in the Gujrat PML-N chapter had been feeling the absence of an effective strategy for future course of action as party was facing challenges from PTI as well as PML-Q.

Though some elements in Gujrat PML-N chapter were upset over the dominance of the PML-Q in Gujrat district, as the Q is the allied partner of PML-N in Punjab and federal governments, some senior PML-N figures have advised these elements to devise a strategy on how to cope with the PTI instead of opposing the dominance of the Q, said a former PML-N lawmaker while talking to Dawn.

He said the party rank and file had also been feeling neglected by the central PML-N leadership and in such circumstances, the efforts to rejuvenate the party ranks were receiving positive vibes.

Mr Awan has so far held separate consultations with party’s Gujranwala division president ex-MNA Abid Raza Kotla, former advisor to prime minister Nawabzada Ghazanfar Ali Gul, former state minister Jaafar Iqbal Fatta Bhand, Gujrat district PML-N president Tahirul Mulk, ex MPA Mian Tariq Mehmood Dinga, former Gujrat Municipal Corporation mayor Haji Nasir Mehmood, Amjad Farooq and others on how to re-energise the party cadres and its impact on the future electoral politics in Gujrat.

Another source said former party lawmakers and officials sought the posting of district general secretary for which several names had been proposed. The position had been vacated after Raja Muhammad Aslam joined the PML-Q around six months ago.

When contacted, Mr Awan said that the he would host a lunch-on meeting of the party elders in his home town Sara-i-Alamgir within a week to create an opportunity for the local party ranks to devise a strategy and forge unity in the wake of challenging situation.

Published in Dawn, July 1st, 2024