Sources in the ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) party said Prime Minister Andrej Plenković is considering calling an early parliamentary election in the summer, Nacional weekly reported on Tuesday (March 20).

The plans, allegedly considered by Plenković and his aides, was confirmed by two unnamed senior party officials. The plan would include calling for an early parliamentary election to be held some time between early July and late September, Nacional reported.

The plan could be a sign of deepening internal divisions within the HDZ related to the ratification of the Istanbul Convention on combating violence against women, as some of the more conservative party members refuse to support ratifying the document in parliament, on account of it including provisions mentioning the so-called “gender ideology”.

“These indications are very serious, and they come from (government headquarters) Banski dvori,” Nacional reporter Orhidea Gaura-Hodak said in her appearance in N1 programme Novi dan on Tuesday.

“The prime minister has decided to insist on (ratifying) the Istanbul Convention at any cost, and it led to the intensifying of (internal) conflicts,” said Gaura-Hodak.