Sharjeel Memon Accuses Punjab Government of Running One-Sided Campaign Against PPP

KARACHI: Sindh Senior Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon has accused the Punjab government of conducting a one-sided campaign against the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), saying this is a time for solidarity with the flood-affected people of Punjab, not political point-scoring.

Speaking at a press conference in Karachi, Memon said that after the devastating floods in Punjab, the PPP and the Sindh government intensified their relief efforts for the people of Punjab. He noted that PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari personally visited affected areas, mobilized the party’s local leadership, and that Punjab’s governor also took an active role in the relief operations.

Memon added that PPP leaders from Punjab were seen among the people, while Bilawal Bhutto urged the federal government to seek assistance from international organizations to address the climate-induced disaster. “We mentioned the Benazir Income Support Program because it offers immediate relief. Criticism arose only because the program was initiated by President Asif Ali Zardari in the name of Shaheed Benazir Bhutto,” he said.

The Sindh minister thanked Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for appealing to international institutions for help, stating that despite criticism from some quarters, the prime minister took the right step.

Sharjeel Memon claimed that the Punjab government’s ongoing criticism of the PPP is actually aimed at undermining the federal government. “We are not part of the federal government, but we support it on issue-based matters. The Punjab government’s conspiracy against the federation will not succeed,” he warned.

He further said that the Punjab government’s hostility stems from jealousy. “Their issue is not with PPP—it’s with the prime minister. When the PM visits Sindh or Balochistan, the chief ministers welcome him, but in Punjab, he receives neither a welcome nor protocol,” Memon remarked.