- Shehryar Afridi’s statement doesn’t represent party’s stance: PTI.
- PTI formed committee for holding talks with establishment: spox.
- PTI rules out possibility of negotiations with ruling parties.
After Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Shehryar Afridi’s surprising statement, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) slammed the former ruling party, claiming that the Imran Khan-led party seeking to return to power via establishment’s support.
“PTI’s ideology is not political,” Sanaullah alleged while speaking on Geo News programme Naya Pakistan on Saturday. He added that the PTI wanted to be “imposed” on the country with the establishment’s help.
He suggested that all disputes would be resolved if all political parties sit together and institutions worked within their constitutional ambit. The former interior minister said that nobody would object if the country achieved political stability though holding dialogue.
Criticising the PTI, Sanaullah said that the former ruling party was levelling all kind of allegations on the ruling PML-N but it was publically announcing to hold dialogues with the establishment.
He was pointing towards Afridi’s recent statement in which he hinted at holding dialogues with the army chief and the Director General Inter-Services Intelligence (DG ISI), instead of the “rejected rulers”.
However, the PTI did not second Afridi’s statement.
In the same programme, PTI Secretary Information Raoof Hasan said they constituted a committee more than a year and half ago for holding dialogue with the establishment.
“We are ready to hold talks with the establishment but no contact is made so far,” he added.
Hasan was of the view that his party would not enter into negotiations with the ruling parties, including PML-N, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), and Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P), as they “stole our mandate”.
He rejected Sanaullah’s allegation questioning PTI’s political ideology and said that the Imran Khan-founded party formed a six-party alliance which showed it is ready to hold talks with all political parties.
He clarified that Afridi’s statement did not represent his party’s stance. “We want to hold talks with the establishment to tell its constitutional role,” Hasan said, adding that PTI founder Imran Khan would not stay behind bars for nine months if he wanted to strike a deal with the current rulers.
Afridi’s explosive statement
After calls were made to initiate a new round of reconciliation talks, PTI senior leader Shehryar Afridi on Friday claimed that his party will hold “dialogues with the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) and the Director General of the Inter-Services Intelligence (DG ISI) soon” instead of talking to “rejected people” who reached the parliament via “Form 47”.
Afridi made the statement while speaking on the Geo News programme Naya Pakistan when sought his opinion about ways to put the country on the path of political stability.
“My leader doesn’t want any NRO. We want dialogues for the betterment of Pakistan,” Afridi said, adding that Khan wants to engage all stakeholders for a better country but he did not receive any response. He clarified that the PTI was neither going against the national interests nor the military and other state institutions.
The former federal minister also claimed that the Imran-founded party would soon hold talks with the army chief and the top spy, however, he did not disclose any further details nor any other party leader seconded his statement so far.
