Shafay backs Maryam as Salik faces Rs5bn defamation notice

Punjab Commerce and Investment Minister Shafay Hussain has publicly supported Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz’s provincial administration after his brother, Federal Minister Chaudhry Salik Hussain, levelled corruption allegations against the Punjab government. The disagreement has created a visible political divide between the two Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid leaders serving in the provincial and federal cabinets.

Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari said the provincial government had no plan to remove Shafay from the cabinet because his recent interviews had supported the chief minister. She also said Shafay had rejected the allegations made by Salik. Shafay is the PML-Q’s only representative in Maryam’s provincial cabinet.

The dispute intensified when Maryam sent Salik a Rs5 billion defamation notice over his accusations. The notice demands that the federal minister withdraw his statements concerning alleged corruption in the provincial government. Salik said he would formally respond to the notice, but the available report did not provide details of his intended legal or political defence.

Bokhari called on Salik to produce evidence supporting his claims or apologise. She argued that a federal minister belonging to a governing coalition should not continue enjoying the privileges of office while making unsubstantiated accusations against an allied provincial administration. Her comments represent the Punjab government’s position and do not independently establish whether Salik’s allegations are true or false.

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif also entered the debate, saying Salik’s comments were difficult for him to understand politically. While describing corruption as a serious national challenge requiring collective action, Asif suggested that Salik’s intervention could make political sense if it formed part of a longer-term effort to create space for himself at the provincial and federal levels. That interpretation was presented as Asif’s political assessment rather than a confirmed motive.

The controversy also drew a response from former federal minister Moonis Elahi, who criticised Maryam following her remarks concerning Gujrat. Moonis, the son of former Punjab chief minister Chaudhry Parvez Elahi, disputed the chief minister’s political mandate in a social-media post and linked her position to the disputed Form-47 election results.

The exchange reflects a broader division within Punjab’s influential Chaudhry family that became pronounced after Imran Khan’s government was removed through a no-confidence vote in 2022. Parvez Elahi and Moonis subsequently aligned themselves with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, while Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain’s sons, Salik and Shafay, remained aligned with the Sharif-led governing coalition.

For now, the provincial government has indicated that Shafay’s cabinet position is secure despite his brother’s confrontation with the chief minister. The immediate next step is expected to be Salik’s response to the defamation notice, which could determine whether the dispute remains a political exchange or proceeds into formal legal action.