During a luncheon he gave for his coalition partners, the premier provided the guarantee while discussing the political environment of the country and the upcoming general elections.
According to officials who attended the meeting and requested anonymity, the prime minister informed his coalition partners that he would start talking to Raja Riaz, the leader of the opposition in the National Assembly, about a caretaker prime minister starting today (Friday). The premier continued by expressing his optimism that the consultation will come to a close in two to three days.
On August 12, the assembly's term will come to an end; if it does, elections will be held within 60 days. However, the Constitution mandates that if the assembly is dissolved before the end of its term, elections must be conducted within 90 days.
If the motion to dissolve the lower house of parliament is approved on August 9, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) would require new elections to be held within 90 days.
However, a caretaker prime minister's name must be agreed upon by both the government and the opposition before the assembly is dissolved.
According to The News, PM Shehbaz established a five-person PML-N committee last month to undertake discussions over the appointment of a caretaker premier and the dissolution of the National Assembly.
The panel contains no representatives from Sindh or Balochistan, despite the fact that both provincial assemblies will also be dissolved along with the National Assembly next month.
The federal ministers Ishaq Dar, Ahsan Iqbal, Khawaja Saad Rafiq, Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, and Khawaja Muhammad Asif make up the committee that has been given the job of consulting with the political parties and groups that make up the current government.