Long march may not be needed: Maryam.

LAHORE -- PML-N vice president Maryam Nawaz on Saturday hinted at the chance that the Pakistan Democratic Movement's (PDM) long march, planned for the next month to supposedly oust the Imran Khan government, may not be held after all.

'There is a possibility that the long march may not be needed,' said the PML-N leader in reply to a question whether the PDM's long march would end before moving beyond the PML-N's bastion of Gujranwala.

She was talking to reporters here on Saturday before receiving her cousin Hamza Shehbaz, who was released from the Kot Lakhpat Jail on bail after spending 20 months in prison in a money laundering case instituted by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

Earlier, Maulana Fazlur Rehman, the president of the opposition alliance PDM, had announced that the long march on Islamabad would be held from March 26 to overthrow the government.

Released from jail on bail, Hamza says no corruption charge established against Sharif family

Ms Nawaz, however, did not explain why the march might not be needed. But, she did declare that people were fully prepared for it.

Answering a question about the PML-N joining hands with the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) over the Senate polls in Punjab from where all 11 candidates have been elected unopposed, she said: 'It is better if you do not ask me about this.'

Five Senate seats went to the PTI and PML-N each and one to the PML-Q, an ally of the ruling party.

A source close to her said that Ms Nawaz was not happy over her party's decision to go for an unopposed Senate election in Punjab. Ms Nawaz wanted the election in Punjab on March 3 to expose the fissures within the PTI. She is of the view that through the unopposed election, the opposition had provided relief to Imran Khan, the source said.

The PTI has credited PML-Q senior leader and Punjab Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Parvez Elahi with evolving a consensus among the ruling party and the opposition - PML-N and PPP - to have their senators elected as per their numbers in the Punjab Assembly.

'There was no rigging, no quarrel, and no bickering. The Senate polls were held successfully in Punjab. Another successful inning of the Pakistan Muslim League for strengthening democracy,' PML-Q MNA Moonis Elahi had tweeted.

Critical of Prime Minister Imran Khan, Maryam Nawaz said only one constituency (NA-75) had exposed the 'theft' by Imran Khan. 'He used to talk about free and fair elections and umpires. In this by-poll, the...