ISLAMABAD: President Arif Alvi wrote letter to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sahrif, asking him to appoint a caretaker prime minister by Saturday (today). PM Shehbaz, clearly displeased by the letter, questioned why the president was in a hurry and insinuated that he might not have read the Constitution.

The delay in nominating a caretaker prime minister was apparently because Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Raja Riaz, generally believed to be a “friendly opposition leader”, came out to be a different man, as he had been insisting on his candidate instead of agreeing to the names suggested by the PML-N.

Sources said PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif was insisting, through PM Shehbaz Sharif, on former finance minister Ishaq Dar to be picked as caretaker premier, and if not Mr Dar, then former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi.

However, Mr Riaz, a PTI dissident with no backing of a political party, was getting dictation from another power corridor and insisting on the name of Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani, sources claimed. Mr Sanjrani called on Mr Riaz on Friday, as well as Mr Dar and Ahsan Iqbal.

Meanwhile, PM Shehbaz hosted a dinner for leaders of the outgoing ruling alliance. Later, he held a second round of consultations with the opposition leader, and both are set to meet again on Saturday.

Earlier, President Alvi asked PM Shehbaz and Mr Riaz to propose a name for the caretaker prime minister by Saturday.

In a letter written to PM Shehbaz and Mr Riaz on Friday, President Alvi recalled that he had dissolved the National Assembly on the premier’s advice on Aug 9.

“Under proviso to Article 224 (1A) of the Constitution, President appoints caretaker prime minister in consultation with the prime minister and leader of the opposition in the National Assembly,” he wrote. “Under Article 224A of the Constitution, the prime minister and the leader of the opposition in the outgoing National Assembly are required to propose the name of a person for the appointment of caretaker prime minister within three days of the dissolution of the National Assembly.”

President Alvi then directed PM Shehbaz and Mr Riaz to propose the name of the interim premier “not later than” Aug 12.

Talking to journalists later, PM Shehbaz expressed his displeasure over the letter but insisted that the name of the caretaker premier would be finalised on Saturday.

Mr Sharif said he still had eight days to serve as prime minister, adding that the president had no knowledge about the procedure of appointment of the caretaker prime minister as prescribed in the Constitution.

He explained that in case of their inability to evolve consensus on a single name, the matter would be referred to the parliamentary committee with a mandate to dispose it of within three days. In case of no agreement at that committee level, the matter would be taken up by the Election Commission, who would have to take the final decision within two days.

Other possible contenders for the caretaker premier are Jilal Abbas Jilani, former finance ministers Dr Hafeez Sheikh and Ishaq Dar, former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, former principal secretary Fawad Hassan Fawad, former justice Tassaduq Jilani, Abdullah Hussain Haroon, Pir Pagaro, and Makhdoom Mehmood Ahmed.