The PTI finally presented its demands to the government in written form on Thursday, during the third round of negotiations between the two began.
Talks between the government and the PTI commenced in the last week of December to bring down political temperatures, but despite weeks of negotiations, the dialogue process has hardly moved forward on major issues — the formation of a judicial commission and the release of PTI prisoners.
In the past weeks, the PML-N-led coalition and the PTI have accused each other of derailing the negotiations and lacking seriousness. A highly demanded meeting of the PTI team with party founder Imran Khan in Adiala jail on January 12 paved the way for a third round of talks.
However, tempers have flared again in recent days with the government and opposition lawmakers assailing each other’s parties in the National Assembly and Senate.
Today’s meeting kicked off under the NA speaker’s oversight and is being attended by six people, including three PTI leaders, from the opposition, while eight are representing the government.
Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Omar Ayub, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, PTI MNA Asad Qaiser, Sunni Ittehad Council chief Hamid Raza, Majlis Wahdat-i-Muslimeen chief Senator Raja Nasir Abbas Jafri and PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja are attending from the opposition.
Meanwhile, those representing the government include Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, PML-N Senator Irfan Siddiqui, PPP MNAs Raja Pervaiz Ashraf and Naveed Qamar, prime minister’s political aide Rana Sanaullah, and MQM-P MNA Dr Farooq Sattar.
During the meeting, the PTI formally presented its demands in written form. The three-page document, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, is signed by the six opposition members that attended today’s huddle.
Since Imran’s incarceration last year based on several cases, his party’s relationship with the government, as well as the establishment, has turned exceedingly sour. The PTI has held several protests over the last year, most of which escalated into violence after facing state repression.
Following the PTI’s ‘Final Call’ power show last month, tensions escalated as there were renewed calls to ban the party and task forces formed against an alleged “malicious campaign” as the PTI claimed a dozen deaths of its supporters, which the government officially denies.
However, after Imran formed a five-member committee to hold talks with “anyone” and his lawmakers had a softened stance in the parliament, the government constituted its own committee comprising ruling coalition members.
