Finance minister Dar not attending meetings of the WB, IMF due to deepening crisis in the country
ISLAMABAD: Finance Minister Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar will not participate in the annual spring meetings of the World Bank group and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The World Bank and IMF meetings are scheduled from April 10 to April 16 in Washington.
Earlier, Dar was ready to participate in the WB and IMF meetings, but he has given up his plan to visit Washington.
Now, the Finance and Economic Affairs Division secretaries and the Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) will lead the Pakistani delegation in the meetings.
Meanwhile, Ishaq Dar has also cancelled his trip to the United Arab Emirates to discuss bilateral economic cooperation.
NSC crucial meeting begins
Moreover, the National Security Council (NSC) is holding its crucial meeting at the Prime Minister House this morning.
PM Shehbaz Sharif is chairing the meeting while chief of army staff General Asim Munir, director general of ISI Lt-Gen. Nadeem Anjum, defence minister Khawaja Asif, interior minister Rana Sanaullah and other members of the council are attending meeting.
The council will discuss the latest security situation in case the government holds elections in Punjab on May 14.
On Thursday, amid widening political rift and tug of war with the judiciary, the federal government summoned a meeting of the National Security Council on Friday.
The heads of the sensitive agencies will brief the NSC meeting about the security situation in the country.
The meeting is being held just a few days after the Supreme Court ordered elections in Punjab on May 14 by declaring the null and void of the ECP decision. ECP had delayed elections in Punjab and KP to Oct 8.
The three-member bench of the apex court headed by chief justice Bandial announced elections in Punjab on May 14 instead of April 30.
Meanwhile, the National Assembly passed a resolution on Thursday wherein it rejected the order of the three-member bench of the Supreme Court on elections in Punjab.
The Parliament also made it binding on Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and the federal cabinet not to implement the decision. The resolution sought a full court review of the verdict.
