ISLAMABAD: Opposition alliance Tehreek Tahafuz Ayeen-i-Pakistan (TTAP) decided on Thursday to respond positively to any offers for dialogue by the government, sources told Dawn.
The decision was taken as prominent members of the alliance met at an Iftar gathering at the residence of TTAP leader Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar in Islamabad, and later held a meeting over the prevailing situation in the country.
The gathering was attended by National Assembly Opposition Leader Mehmood Khan Achakzai, Senate Opposition Leader Allama Raja Nasir Abbas, PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja, former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, former National Assembly speaker Asad Qaiser, Sunni Ittehad Council’s (SIC) Sahibzada Hassan, and others.
One of the leaders who attended the meeting told Dawn on condition of anonymity that during the discussion after Iftar, Abbas shared that a “key figure from the ruling PML-N” had contacted him and offered talks.
He quoted Abbas saying that the person from the ruling party gave the assurance that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif wanted to settle issues and resolve tensions between the government and the opposition.
The sources further said that the person had also assured that the PM “will never backtrack from his words if anything is decided”.
“It was then unanimously decided that the TTAP would give a positive response to any offer for talks by the government,” he said.
He also said, “We want to see if the government will once again backtrack from its words. If the government backtracks, people will judge it and will know who is serious about the future of the country.”
When Dawn contacted former National Assembly speaker Asad Qaiser regarding the matter, he said the TTAP had just one demand: that the government should allow incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan’s family to meet him and his personal physicians to examine him.
“Now it is in the hands of the government whether it wants to cool down the temperature or not,” he said.
Today’s development comes three days after PML-N Senator and PM’s aide Rana Sanaullah, in a Senate address, extended an olive branch to the PTI to advance the ‘Charter of Democracy’, signed between the PPP and the PML-N in 2006, and asked opposition lawmakers to rejoin parliamentary standing committees to kick-start the political process for reconciliation.
“Let us sit together to strengthen and take forward the charter of democracy,” Mr Sanaullah said, adding that the government was ready for a dialogue to strengthen democracy and avoid confrontation and deadlock.
It was not the first time the ruling coalition has invited the PTI for talks. In November and December last year, the government leaders made similar proposals to the opposition to break the political deadlock; however, these offers did not lead to anything substantial.
To break the political deadlock, the government and the opposition had earlier engaged in a dialogue, following the formation of respective committees in December 2024. However, the talks collapsed after multiple rounds, as both sides refused to soften their stance. In these talks, the PTI had demanded the formation of two separate judicial commissions to probe the May 9, 2023, and Nov 26, 2024, incidents, as well as the release of jailed PTI leaders and workers.
TTAP’s warning
The TTAP also issued a statement after the gathering in Islamabad and warned that any criminal negligence with regard to the health of Imran could further aggravate the political crisis in the country.
According to a statement issued by the alliance on the social media platform X, the opposition leaders voiced their concerns during TTAP’s central committee meeting.
The statement said TTAP leaders demanded that Imran be provided immediate medical treatment at Shifa International Hospital, be examined by his personal doctors, and that restrictions on his access to his lawyers and meetings with family members be lifted forthwith.
It added that the ex-premier had been unjustly imprisoned and should be released.
The TTAP leaders also condemned the “government’s continued illegal secrecy” regarding Imran’s health and medical treatment, and reiterated the demand that he be shifted to Shifa International Hospital for specialised treatment and be examined by his personal physicians, Dr Faisal Sultan and Dr Aasim Yusuf.
“Opposition leaders expressed grave concern over the continued concealment of Imran’s medical reports and test results from his family, saying that such actions were further increasing doubts and fears about the PTI founder’s health condition,” the statement said.
“The TTAP leaders further warned that criminal negligence regarding the former prime minister’s health could push the country’s political crisis onto an even more dangerous path,” it said.
The statement reiterated that Imran Khan, who had been incarcerated in false cases, must be released, as this was the demand of the majority of the people of Pakistan.
The statement also drew attention to incarcerated SIC Chairman Sahibzada Hamid Raza, and demanded his release as well the release of other political prisoners, including Bushra Bibi, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Yasmin Rashid, Umar Sarfaraz Cheema, Ejaz Chaudhry, Ali Wazir, and Mahrang Baloch.
Meanwhile, the statement also expressed serious concerns over the “alarming increase” in terrorism across the country, deteriorating ties with Afghanistan, the prospects of war in the region, the worsening economy, and growing repression and lawlessness.
Expressing deep concern over the increase in terrorist attacks across the country in recent weeks, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, the statement said that the federal government, in collaboration with provincial governments, all political stakeholders, and the public, should formulate a concrete national strategy to address the issue.
The statement further urged the governments of Pakistan and Afghanistan to “avoid further confrontation and to initiate concrete, sincere, and meaningful negotiations to seriously address the problem of terrorism”.
“They also demanded that contacts be made with neighbouring countries and friendly governments such as Saudi Arabia and Türkiye to find a solution to the crisis that would save Pakistan and the entire region from further bloodshed and sabotage by external and hostile forces,” it added.
During the meeting, TTAP also expressed concern over the worsening economic conditions caused and drew attention to recently released figures showing that poverty in the country had risen to 29pc and unemployment has reached a 21-year high, the statement said.
“Contrary to the government’s claims of major economic agreements, both foreign and domestic investment have declined sharply,” it said.
“The exit of hundreds of major multinational companies from the Pakistani market in recent months was evidence of the country’s deteriorating risk profile,” it said.
The statement said that the government had no concrete plan to deal with the economic crisis.
It added that opposition leaders in the coming months would present an alternative budget and a series of economic and policy proposals with the help of experts, offering concrete solutions to the economic and legal crises facing the country.
The statement also cautioned against threats of a US attack on Iran and termed any such move as a cause of devastation for the region.
“The government should play a diplomatic role to prevent any such American action,” it said. It stated that US and Israel were attempting to encircle Iran and destroy and divide it through military attacks.
“At this moment, Pakistan’s solidarity with Iran is the need of the hour in order to protect Pakistan and the region from the destructive consequences of Zionist aggression.”
The TTAP leaders also condemned the current government’s joining of Donald Trump’s Board of Peace.
“Board of Peace is an attempt by the US to establish a non-representative alternative to the United Nations, and the exclusion of Palestinians from the board exposes the sinister intentions behind the plan … something Pakistan must not be part of under any circumstances,” they said.
