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ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s ruling coalition faced fresh strain on Wednesday after former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari summoned a high-level meeting of his party to decide its stance amid an escalating rift with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government at the center. 

The disagreement between the two main coalition partners — Bhutto-Zardari’s Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) — has widened over how to distribute federal relief funds to victims of recent floods that have killed more than 1,000 people across Pakistan this year.

The PPP wants cash aid routed through the federal Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), a welfare scheme named after Bhutto-Zardari’s late mother and former premier Benazir Bhutto, while Punjab’s PML-N government insists on using its own provincial damage assessments.

Tensions intensified after Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, the daughter of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and the PM’s niece, defended her province’s right to control its water resources. The remarks angered the PPP-led government in Sindh province, which lies downstream along the Indus River, Pakistan’s main water source, and has long accused Punjab of hoarding water flows.

The escalating feud has raised questions about the durability of the coalition that has governed Pakistan since early 2024 under a post-election power-sharing arrangement.

“Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has summoned a meeting of the Pakistan People’s Party’s Central Executive Committee at Bilawal House Karachi. Important decisions regarding national politics will be made in the meeting,” the PPP said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.

President Asif Ali Zardari, Bhutto-Zardari’s father and co-chairman of the PPP, has also called Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, seen as close to Pakistan’s military leadership, to Karachi to help defuse tensions.

On Wednesday evening, the president met Naqvi, Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar and National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq in Nawabshah in a meeting widely seen as part of efforts to defuse tensions within the ruling coalition.

PPP spokesperson Nadeem Afzal Chan told Arab News the party would discuss “the future of the alliance” at the upcoming meeting, scheduled for Oct. 18. 

“The party has made certain demands, including local government elections in Punjab, use of BISP data for flood relief, and support measures for farmers,” he said. “The party will continue to raise its voice in favor of these demands.”

Punjab Information Minister Azma Bukhari, a close aide to Maryam Nawaz, rejected the PPP’s accusations and dismissed calls for an apology from the Punjab chief minister.

“Giving dictation and interference in administrative affairs is not acceptable,” Bukhari told Arab News. 

“They are our allies. They can advise us, but it is the prerogative of the government and the chief minister to accept or reject that advice. They should not use this advice as a blackmailing tool. Their recommendations are welcome, but the government will see what it can do.”

She said BISP data “is different than flood loss data,” explaining that Punjab’s government was calculating losses of property, livestock and crops independently.

“Maryam Nawaz will never apologize, and why would she apologize? Should she apologize for standing with Punjab? It is out of the question,” Bukhari added, when asked if the CM would withdraw her comments on water resources. 

While opposition politicians have urged Bhutto-Zardari’s party to move a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Sharif, most analysts say such an escalation remains improbable.

After the February 2024 general elections, no single party won a parliamentary majority. Candidates backed by jailed former premier Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) ran as independents and secured the largest bloc of seats, but were unable to form a government. The PML-N and PPP subsequently stitched together a coalition through complex National Assembly arithmetic, bringing in smaller parties to reach a majority.

This coalition is widely believed to have the backing of Pakistan’s powerful military establishment, which has long played a decisive role in shaping political outcomes and continues to be seen as a stabilizing force behind the current setup.

“The tensions will ultimately die down as the government has full backing of the [military] establishment. Maryam Nawaz is unlikely to apologize for her statements, but there could be some sort of clarification,” senior journalist Mazhar Abbas said. 

Veteran journalist Suhail Warraich also said the row would likely end in reconciliation.

“The end will be that the two parties will patch up, nothing more,” Warraich told Arab News. 

“This will happen without any apology from Maryam Nawaz. These issues create noise but rarely lead to breakups.”

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday met with a delegation of the Saudi Shoura Council, led by its chairman Dr. Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Ibrahim Al Sheikh, and agreed to strengthen parliamentary exchanges between the two countries.

The five-day visit by the Saudi delegation aims to deepen cooperation between the two parliaments, expand institutional linkages and enhance people-to-people ties. 

“Both leaders agreed to promote exchanges of parliamentary delegations between the two countries,” the Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement issued after the meeting, referring to Sharif and the chairman of the Saudi Shoura Council.

The visit reflects the growing political, economic, and defense engagement between Pakistan and �������� following a series of high-level exchanges this year, including the signing of a joint defense cooperation agreement in September 2025. Officials said the discussions in Islamabad focus on building long-term parliamentary and institutional partnerships that complement the expanding strategic relationship.

Sharif lauded the development vision of Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman, describing it as “exemplary,” and praised the Kingdom’s achievements in economic reform, social progress, and women’s empowerment.

“Under his [Crown Prince’s] leadership, �������� has achieved remarkable progress in every field, setting an example for other nations,” the prime minister said, according to the PMO.

Al Sheikh thanked the Pakistani leadership for the warm hospitality extended to the delegation, saying the visit would further strengthen bilateral relations through increased parliamentary dialogue and cooperation.

During a separate meeting with the Pakistan–�������� Parliamentary Friendship Group, members reaffirmed Pakistan’s “unwavering commitment” to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Kingdom and underscored the “deep-rooted brotherhood” between the two nations.

“It was a productive meeting in which members of the PFG appreciated the recent expansion of economic and defense cooperation between the two countries, particularly lauding the Pakistan–�������� defense pact,” said Senator Sehar Kamran, a PFG member, while speaking to Arab News.

She described the defense pact as “a continuity of six decades of cooperation and collaboration,” adding that Pakistan–Saudi relations “have only grown stronger with time.”

The chairman of the Shoura Council also invited members of the PFG to visit the Kingdom and is expected to return to Pakistan in November to attend a parliamentary conference, according to Kamran.

PFG Convener and Minister for Religious Affairs Sardar Muhammad Yousaf said the visit symbolized “the enduring partnership between the two countries, nurtured under the visionary leadership of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and the Crown Prince.”

“The PFG serves as a vital channel to enhance people-to-people linkages and promote parliamentary and institutional exchanges,” he said.