ISLAMABAD; The ongoing row between the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) escalated further on Tuesday, with PPP Vice President Senator Sherry Rehman issuing a strong warning to the ruling coalition partner that governance in the Senate would become “very difficult” without PPP’s unequivocal support.
In recent days, tensions between the two parties have intensified over a series of political and administrative disagreements, including the distribution of flood compensation funds and water rights linked to the Cholistan canals project.
The PPP, which governs Sindh, has taken particular exception to remarks made by Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, whose party leads the federal government.
Speaking on DawnNewsTV’s programme Doosra Rukh, Rehman cautioned the PML-N against taking the PPP’s support for granted.
“If you want to tear apart the whole coalition, then don’t think our presence on the treasury benches is unconditional,” she said. “We are the largest party in the Senate, and without clear PPP backing, things will get very difficult for you.”
She criticised what she described as “unreasonable attacks” on the PPP’s top leadership, including Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and his sister.
Rehman argued that the issue was not merely a Sindh–Punjab dispute but one of federal responsibility, as 6.5 million people were affected by the recent floods.
She questioned why the PPP’s proposal to distribute flood aid through the Benazir Income Support Programme was framed as a provincial conflict. “Are the rest of the people not Pakistani? We are a federal party and have voters in Punjab too,” she said.
The PPP leader also defended Bilawal’s tenure as foreign minister, noting that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had himself praised his diplomatic performance, including his leadership of Pakistan’s delegation after the May conflict with India.
When asked about sitting on the opposition benches, Rehman said the decision would rest with the party’s central executive committee, stressing that the PPP did not intend to destabilise the government.
Earlier, PPP Senator Palwasha Mohammad Zai Khan warned Maryam Nawaz that her party would “again need Bilawal and Asif Zardari,” adding that political popularity could not be secured through posters or TikTok campaigns but through governance performance. She cautioned against adopting a “martial law dictator” approach in Punjab.
In Lahore, Maryam Nawaz responded by asserting that as Punjab’s chief minister, it was her duty to prioritise her province.
“If Maryam Nawaz Sharif does not speak for Punjab, then who will?” she asked, while indirectly criticising PPP’s governance in Sindh by expressing hope that other provinces would become as “clean and developed as Punjab.”
Meanwhile, PTI leader and former National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser stated that his party would support a no-confidence motion against the government if the PPP were serious.
“We want to rid the people of this illegitimate government,” he said, calling for stronger democratic institutions.
Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari, reacting to PPP’s statements, accused the party of “mixed messaging,” calling their ceasefire talk insincere while they simultaneously engaged in “aerial firing.” She added that PPP should not lecture PML-N on democracy, asserting that PML-N had carried the democratic struggle for decades.
The intensifying public exchanges between PPP and PML-N highlight deepening fractures within the ruling coalition, raising questions over its ability to maintain political stability in the coming months.
