ISLAMABAD, Jan 21: The future of negotiations between the government and the opposition party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), remains uncertain due to disagreements over the formation of judicial commissions to investigate the events of May 9, 2023, and Nov 26, 2024.
Formal talks between the two sides commenced on December 23 of last year, aiming to ease the ongoing political tension and instability caused by PTI’s protests against alleged electoral rigging and the arrests of its members and leaders.
PTI presented its charter of demands during the third round of talks held on Jan 16, giving the government a seven-day timeline to set up two judicial commissions to probe the incidents of May 9, 2023 and Nov 26, 2024.
The key demand has become a sticking point, as the government has yet to agree to form the commissions. In response, PTI’s incarcerated leader Imran Khan has instructed his party to withdraw from the talks if the demand is not fulfilled.
PTI chief Gohar Ali Khan told the media on Monday outside Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail that Khan had directed the negotiating team to withdraw from talks if the judicial commission was not formed within seven days.
Khan, 72, has been lodged at the Adiala Jail since mid-2023 in multiple cases.
Emphasising that the establishment of the judicial commission was critical for a meaningful dialogue, Gohar said if the government did not move forward on forming the commissions, there was no point in continuing the negotiations.
Gohar said there wouldn’t be a fourth round of talks if the commissions were not constituted. However, he added that the PTI team would wait for seven days for a response from the government side.
On May 9, 2023, violent protests erupted after the arrest of Khan by paramilitary Rangers from the premises of the Islamabad High Court. His party workers vandalised a dozen military installations, including the Jinnah House (Lahore Corps Commander house), and the ISI building in Faisalabad. Khan had said he was implicated in the May 9 cases as a result of a “well-orchestrated plan” to “harass” him for political reasons.
On November 13 last year, Khan issued a “final call” for nationwide protests on November 26, demanding the restoration of the PTI’s electoral mandate, the release of detained party members, and the reversal of the 26th constitutional amendment. Responding to his call, thousands of PTI workers reached Islamabad but faced a crackdown by police, which forcibly dispersed them while arresting more than 1,400.
Meanwhile, the government’s negotiation committee was mulling over extending its seven-day deadline by another week to submit its response to the PTI demands, said Senator Irfan Siddiqui, the spokesperson for the government’s negotiation committee.
“Currently, the seven parties, included in the government committee, are in the process of mutual consultation and seeking guidance from their respective leaderships,” Senator Siddiqui posted on X on Monday, adding that “it may take another week to prepare the final response”.
His statement came against the backdrop of several reports that claimed that the government side’s response was ready and it had decided not to constitute a judicial commission on the May 9 incident.
Siddiqui refuted the reports, terming them “baseless” and asserting that there was no truth in the news.
PTI has earlier announced to conclude the talks by January 31, however, the deadline is unlikely to be met due to the current differences over the core demands. (PTI)
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