F.P. Report
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Thursday announced staging “peaceful protests” across the country after rebutting reports of forming an alliance with the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) in the Centre and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-Parliamentarians (PTI-P) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The announcements came after sources-based reports of PTI founder Imran Khan softening his stance against political rivals and consenting to hold talks with the PPP and the party’s breakaway faction led by Parvez Khattak. Party sources told media that Khan, who remains incarcerated at Adiala jail, is “ready” to talk to the PPP, which has already announced supporting Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s candidate for prime minister — Shehbaz Sharif.
However, PTI leader Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif denied the reports of contacting PPP for government formation. Speaking to journalists, the lawyer said that the PTI founder had “strictly” advised against holding talks with PPP and PML-N. “Reports of [PTI] forming government with PPP are misleading. The PTI founder said to sit in opposition but not to forge alliance with PPP and PML-N,” he added.
Later, while talking to journalists after meeting with Khan in Rawalpindi, Barrister Gohar Khan and Sher Afzal Marwat also ruled out a coalition with the Bilawal-led party. “We informed Khan sahib about PPP’s messages. In response, Khan sahib flatly rejected the idea of power-sharing with either the PPP or the PML-N,” Marwat told journalists.
Moreover, Gohar categorically rejected media reports claiming a proposed political alliance between PTI and PTI-P in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. “We will not be joining hands with the PTI-P.” The PTI leader also invited those political parties who believe that the recent elections were rigged — including Jamaat-e-Islami, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F), and others — to join them in their protest on Saturday.
As Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), the party having second largest majority in the National Assembly, allies with other political parties including PPP to form a coalition government in the Centre, PTI claimed that it had sufficient numbers in the parliament to elect its prime minister. In a recent development, the party also nominated its general secretary Omar Ayub as its candidate for the post of the country’s prime minister.
Meanwhile, Khan also nominated Mian Aslam as the PTI’s nominee for Punjab chief minister and Salar Khan for Balochistan’s top office. Reiterating the claims of winning the most National Assembly seats in the 2024 polls, the Imran-founded party said it has secured 180 NA seats.
“We have secured 180 seats,” former PTI chairman Gohar said, adding that his party would only accept the results complied in line with the Form 45s. In light of the leader’s revelation about asking the political parties to join PTI’s protests, sources said that Gohar would lead a delegation into a meeting with JUI-F supremo Maulana Fazlur Rehman.
It may be noted that two days ago, PPP Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari expressed willingness to hold talks with PTI to promote the reconciliation process in the country. “We wanted that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf should also have been included in the reconciliation process as we want not only the PTI to be part of this process of reconciliation but every political power to be part of the process of reconciliation. “We want to go together with economic, defence agenda and other similar things and make Mian sahib and other friends successful so that we can make Pakistan and its people successful,” he had announced at a joint press of six-party alliance on Tuesday. The sources told media about a decision taken by Khan to form a committee for negotiations with political parties under Asad Qaiser’s leadership.
According to the sources, the PTI founder told Qaiser that all decisions would be taken in consultation with the political leadership and that they should prepare for government formation. Khan was also consulted about an alliance with a new political party in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the task of which has also been given to Qaiser, the sources added. The political committee will make decisions regarding negotiations with political parties, the party sources said, adding that the PTI founder is ready to discuss serious issues with them.
