LAHORE, Aug 31: The Punjab government will collapse in case the PPP withdraws its ministers from the cabinet or the party rescinds support to the six-month-old PML-led coalition, says prime minister’s advisor Mian Manzoor Ahmad Wattoo who has been tasked to ensure maximum votes for Mr Asif Ali Zardari from the Punjab Assembly for the presidential election to be held on Sept 6.

Wattoo told reporters at his residence on Sunday that the day the PPP ministers came out of the cabinet, Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif would lose majority's support in the 371-member house, because of which he could be asked to seek a fresh vote of confidence.

He said since the PML-N had only 171 members with it against the minimum requirement of 186, it would not be possible for the chief minister to prove that he had majority’s support in the house, resulting in fall of his government. Himself a former chief minister of Punjab, Mr Wattoo said the PPP did not want to put the chief minister into a difficult situation, hence it was not withdrawing its members from the cabinet.

As for the repeated demands made by some of the PML-N leaders that the PPP ministers should quit, Mr Wattoo was of the view that they did not represent the party’s policy. Otherwise, he said, the PML-N could throw the PPP ministers out.

"The PPP doesn't want to break coalition with the PML-N (in Punjab). But, if the PML-N wants to part company, it should take the initiative", said Mr Wattoo, who had formed a coalition with the PPP in 1993 when his PML-Junejo had only 17 MPAs in a house of 248.

In response to a question, the adviser on industrial production hoped that in case the situation in Punjab changed, the PML-Q would form an alliance with the PPP just like the PML-Junejo had done in 1993. This, he said, would be the best course for the PML-Q people as they would get a role in the government.

But if the PML-Q decided to support the PML-N, the party would stand divided, with some people joining hands with the PPP, Mr Wattoo said.

In his estimation, Mr Zardari was likely to get some 450 out of total 701 votes of the president's electoral college, while PML-N-backed Justice Saeeduzzaman Siddiqui would get between 140 and 150 votes, with the remaining 60-70 going to PML-Q's Syed Mushahid Husain.

Of PML-N candidate, he said that he could be a good legal expert, but he had no political background or experience.

But, he said, Mr Zardari had a treasure of political experience as he had been working in the company of Ms Benazir Bhutto for 20 years and also had exposure at the global level.

He said it would be better if the PML-N and the PML-Q candidates quit the presidential race.