Pakistan’s two main family-controlled parties are closing in on forming a coalition government that would thwart Imran Khan’s group, even as the jailed former cricket star’s candidate won the most seats in the country’s disputed election .

Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz Chairman Shehbaz Sharif issued a statement on X last night saying Sharif and the Bhutto family’s party “agreed in principle to save the country from political instability”.

It may be the case that Pakistan’s conservatives will close the ranks after Khan’s loyalists, running as independents, overcame the odds with a strong performance in Thursday’s election, a sign of enduring public support for Khan and disillusionment with the status quo. . It could also lead to more protests and riots across the country.

Sharif’s Muslim League-Nawaz party and Bilawal Bhutto Zardari’s Pakistan People’s Party have held meetings over the past two days as they seek to form an alliance after elections led to another hung parliament.

Bhutto Zardari’s party said it would consider the Muslim League-Northern Alliance proposal at a leadership meeting on Monday. The PPP said in a statement posted on

Neither side disclosed details of the proposal, instead releasing videos of two family members embracing and holding talks at the sprawling Bhutto Zardari residence in Lahore.

The alliance between the two political factions could escalate tensions after an already contentious election, in which Khan’s candidate was forced to run as an independent, winning the most seats but falling short of a majority, Observer People were shocked.

Any delay in forming a government would put pressure on an economy that is already challenged on multiple fronts. Inflation is at 28%, the fastest in Asia, and the latest International Monetary Fund bailout is set to expire in March, suggesting the next leader will have to negotiate a new deal.

Adnan Khan, head of international sales at Intermarket Securities Ltd., said: “Irregularities and delays in election results could trigger a legal battle, a situation that could also jeopardize the economic outlook in the short term.”

Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) will file a lawsuit with the Election Commission in an attempt to force a recount of some of the National Assembly seats it lost. Supporters of the party staged small protests in several Pakistani cities and blocked a highway in Peshawar to draw attention to electoral fraud.

“What are they going to do, are they going to put everyone in jail?” asked Humaira Mahmud, 54, a Pakistani-American watching from the sidelines. “We love our military. We love our police. We don’t love a handful of generals who are trying to control for their own benefit. They need to respect their citizens.”

The military has ruled Pakistan directly or behind the scenes for much of its modern history, but has recently said it will no longer participate in politics. Khan said the generals conspired with other political parties to oust him from power in April 2022 and were responsible for suppressing him and his organization, but the military has repeatedly denied the accusations.

“If the military and other politicians join forces to reject the transfer of power, then anger will spill over into the streets,” said Sarwar Bari, an Islamabad-based political analyst and former head of the Free and Fair Elections Network. “Despite the difficulties, most People still support PTI.”

Khan’s loyalists hold at least 95 of the 265 seats up for grabs in the National Assembly. But one Khan-backed candidate who won in Sharif’s stronghold of Lahore has defected to the Muslim League-Shabaab, and others may also switch allegiances.

PTI chairman Gohar Khan told local television channel Geo Television that the remaining independent candidates “are in touch with us and will only stay with us”. He also ruled out the possibility of an alliance with the PML-N or the PPP. “It is better to join the opposition than to form the government with them,” he told Dawn News.