Abdul Ghafoor Haideri, Pakistan Democratic Movement’s (PDM) candidate for Senate deputy chairman’s office, held a meeting with the chief of his own party, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) President Fazlur Rehman in Islamabad on Tuesday. 

Fazl greeted Haideri on his election as senator and Haideri thanked Fazl for nominating him opposition’s candidate for the office of the Senate deputy chairman. Talking to the media, Haideri said he would try his best to come up to PDM’s expectations. 

In a related development on Tuesday, the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) conditionally offered Haideri the post of the Senate deputy chairman. In return, the PTI wanted the JUI-F to support the government’s candidate for Senate chairman’s office Sadiq Sanjrani. However, the government came in an awkward position after Haider rejected the government’s offer. Later, Haideri said the government had not made him any offer for the Senate deputy chairman’s office.

Earlier, Defence Minister Pervaiz Khattak, who spoke to the media after a meeting with the JUI-F leader along with Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani, said the government had offered to make Haideri deputy chairman of the Senate. PDM sources say a committee headed by former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi decided to support Haideri as the joint candidate for the post of the Senate deputy chairman.