-Fawad says PTI wants negotiations to succeed, claiming strategy has been formulated if talks resulted in negative
-Announces rallies to take place in Lahore, Islamabad and Peshawar today
-Leaders from both sides ‘not optimistic’ about election parleys as final round set for tomorrow
-Khawaja Asif raises questions over intentions of opposition party
-Asad Umar casts doubts on PDM-led gov’s will about negotiations
By Anzal Amin
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Senior Vice-President Fawad Chaudhry on Sunday announced that the party will hold rallies starting from May 1 if the negotiations with the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM)-led government fail.
Taking to Twitter, Chaudhry said that the PTI wants the negotiations to succeed, however, it has formulated a strategy in case the talks with the ruling coalition do not bear fruit.
He said that the rallies will begin in Lahore, Islamabad and Peshawar under the leadership of party chairman Imran Khan, asking the supporters to get ready for the “major movement”.
“The PTI will not sit quietly if the [government] treats the Constitution as garbage and the people as insects,” said the senior leader.
Meanwhile, As the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) are all set to hold the ‘final round’ of election talks on Tuesday, leaders from both the opposition and ruling alliance cast doubt on the success of negotiations.
Speaking to the media in Punjab’s Sialkot on Sunday, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif raised questions over the ongoing parleys between the opposition PTI and the PDM teams to evolve consensus on holding the elections across the country simultaneously. “What will be the result of the negotiations? They [PTI] are only making arguments,” the senior PML-N leader remarked.
Referring to the negotiation teams, the defence minister questioned: “Whether the Panchayat [council] has been set up in a legitimate way or in an illegitimate way”.
The PML-N leader said PTI chief Imran Khan had announced holding rallies in three different cities. “He should start the rallies quickly so that the negotiation process can be done away with.”
Similarly, PTI leader Asad Umar said that the PDM-led government’s intentions are not good about the negotiations.
Speaking to the media in Karachi, Umar said that the PTI was holding negotiations with the ruling PDM at the suggestion of the Supreme Court.
He also accused the ruling PDM of pushing the country towards “danger” for the sake of vested interest.
The former federal minister said the country cannot progress unless all sides agree to a unanimous accord to resolve the country’s issues.
He said that Tuesday (May 2) will be the last chance for negotiations.
Umar said that not holding elections within 90 days is a violation of the Constitution and added that the next polls after the imminent one would be held as per the new census.
The talks are being held to end an impasse over the timing of general elections across the country, which has fuelled political tensions in the country, with the Supreme Court also urging the political forces to negotiate and find out a solution to the prevailing political turmoil.
The court had directed the political parties to decide on the election date by April 26, but no progress was made till the deadline. In the April 25 hearing, the apex court mentioned that it cannot ask parties to hold negotiations forcefully.
