LAHORE, Feb 20: As the general election nears the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) is in a fix over disciplinary action against those violating the party discipline.

“The issue of PPP Punjab Information Secretary Dr Fakharuddin Chaudhry’s secret meeting with Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif’s son MNA Hamza Shahbaz has been conveyed to the party leadership, but it has not given a go-ahead to me to initiate any disciplinary action against him on this ground,” PPP Punjab President Imtiaz Safdar Warraich told a meeting of party office-bearers here on Monday.

Warraich informed the participants that he had asked Chaudhry to explain his position on his meeting with Hamza without prior permission of the authorities. “Chaudhry told me that he met with Hamza last week in his private capacity,” Warraich was quoted as having said.

A PPP Punjab office-bearer told Dawn that the party did not seem to be interested in taking disciplinary action against Chaudhry. “The PPP cannot afford to take disciplinary action against those aspiring to join the Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaaf or Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, as the general election is not far away. We know both parties are in contact with a good number of our party men. It will not be easier for them to get from PTI or PML-N what they are longing for. We want them to give a second thought to their future moves,” he said.

Following in PTI’s footsteps, PML-N feels it is right time to open its door for PPP office-bearers frustrated with their party leadership. “Let’s see if Chaudhry picks up the PML-N bait of getting a provincial ticket from Lahore. We believe he will not get anything from the PML-N at the end of the day,” the PPP leader said.

PML-N is not going to stop here. PPP Punjab Finance Secretary Aurengzeb Burki is the next potential target of both PTI and PML-N. Burki’s differences with the party soared after he was ignored for a Senate seat. PPP’s former Lahore president Chaudhry Asghar has already joined the PTI. “Though the switching over of a handful of our office-bearers does not matter much, our rival parties, especially PML-N will propagate it well to expose PPP’s vulnerability,” says the PPP leader.

Burki told Dawn that though he had differences with the party leadership over some matters, he was not seriously considering joining either PTI or PML-N. Chaudhry would target the Sharifs during the tenure of Salmaan Taseer as governor, as he was close to him. He was cornered after Taseer’s assassination and removal of his boss, Fauzia Wahab, from PPP information secretary’s office. “He has no coordination with incumbent central information secretary Qamar Zaman Kaira. Besides, his request to the party co-chairman to accommodate him in any government department was not entertained,” a party insider said.

“Let’s see if Chaudhry formally joins hands with the Sharifs or PPP’s disgruntled couple – Safdar Abbasi and Nahid Khan,” he said.

Warraich was not available for a comment. However, Kaira said party’s Punjab chapter should seek explanation from Chaudhry and send its report to the party leadership for action.