ISLAMABAD: Adviser to Prime Minister on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah said Monday that negotiations between the government and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) could resume if the former ruling party assured “positive progress” on the counter-terrorism policy.
The latest round of government-opposition talks ended in a deadlock early Sunday, with both sides blaming each other for the breakdown. The key differences included the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government’s role in the fight against terrorism and arrangements concerning PTI founder Imran Khan.
Speaking on Geo News programme “Capital Talk”, Sanaullah said the federal government had the constitutional authority to formulate policy on terrorism, while provincial governments were bound to follow it.
“The provincial government will have to play its role in this policy against terrorism at all costs,” he said.
Sanaullah said the military and political leadership had decided to take the fight against terrorism to its conclusion.
He said political issues, the PTI founder’s health and matters concerning meetings had largely been settled.
Responding to a question about Imran Khan, the PM’s aide said the government had agreed to a meeting between the PTI founder and his personal doctors, adding that the party had been advised to approach the court regarding the personal physicians.
Sanaullah said PTI representatives had initially agreed that the federal government would formulate the policy but later demanded that it should be based on “consensus”.
“This is the federal government’s authority to formulate policy on external aggression,” he said, adding that the PTI’s position on the matter was, in his view, “constitutionally and legally incorrect”.
He said strategic decisions to counter external aggression were not made in an open forum, arguing that the provincial government could not force the federation to reach a consensus on such policy.
The adviser also discussed cross-border terrorism involving Afghanistan, saying talks with the Taliban had continued for years and that Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and China had also held negotiations with the group without reaching an agreement.
Sanaullah claimed that individuals involved in terrorist attacks received training in Afghanistan and were controlled from there. He further alleged that Israelis were providing technical training at militant training camps in Afghanistan, claiming that Afghan Taliban had not previously used the drones in question.
On the PTI long march led by KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, Sanaullah said around 3,000 to 4,000 people had gathered when it started from Lakki Marwat.
Meanwhile, PTI leader Asad Qaiser said his party remained ready to hold talks with the government at any time, adding that it had already placed its issues before the authorities.
“The government has to decide what policy it adopts and where it takes the situation,” Qaiser said.
He said the PTI had decided that if governor’s rule or an emergency was imposed in KP, or Chief Minister Afridi was disqualified, the party would withdraw from the assemblies.
Qaiser said the situation in Balochistan, KP and Kashmir was serious. He alleged that PTI ministers and lawmakers in KP were being picked up and said the party could not even protect its elected representatives.
The PTI leader further alleged that the provincial government’s authority and rights were being denied, while the chief minister, who was responsible for law and order, was not being allowed to exercise his authority.
The government and PTI have traded blame over the failure of the latest negotiations. Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi had accused the KP chief minister of attempting to sabotage the talks, while PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja maintained that the government’s insistence on unilateral anti-terrorism measures in KP was the main reason for the deadlock.
