ISLAMABAD: The government of the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) alliance Saturday turned down former prime minister Imran Khan’s invitation to parleys to hold early elections, arguing that “talks don’t come with conditions”.
The opposition Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) party should “sit with us” if it was “serious” and “sincerely” wanted negotiations, insisted Khawaja Saad Rafique, minister for railways, as he addressed a joint press conference with Rana Sanaullah Khan, minister for interior.
“Talks are never conditional anywhere in the world,” Rafique said. “If you put forward your demands first, on what basis will you hold the dialogue,” he asked.
Khan was ousted in April following a protracted political drama that saw Shehbaz Sharif take over as prime minister. Since then, Khan has held massive public rallies demanding the country head to the ballot ahead of the scheduled October 2023 dates, underscoring the risks the government faces as it seeks a bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
“The only way forward from here is to hold early, and free and fair elections,” the former prime minister told the government. “Any other path will only lead to greater political uncertainty and further economic chaos.”
“It’s them [PTI], who need talks, not us,” insisted Rafique. “They start the talk of talks and then shy away from even talking about it. Negotiations are part of the political process and complex problems are resolved when two sides hear each other out.”
H said that for the central government, the dissolution of provincial assemblies in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was not something to be proud of. “We want the assemblies to complete their constitutional term,” he said.
“If Imran Khan is serious then he should understand threats and negotiations are mutually exclusive,” he said.
The minister further said their allies in the government had severe concerns about holding talks with PTI. The government would nevertheless talk — unofficially — with PTI, but the party has been told the PDM would ultimately decide if the government wanted a dialogue.
Speaking on the occasion, the interior minister said: “He [Khan] wanted to get a date for the elections by threatening and hurling abuses at the establishment. He couldn’t.”
“If he wants to get a date from us in a similar manner after having talks, he cannot,” he said.
