Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan has given the government seven days to form judicial commissions on the May 9 and Nov. 26 incidents if it wants the ongoing dialogue process to continue, PTI Chairman Gohar Ali Khan said on Monday.
Addressing a press conference outside Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail after meeting the former prime minister, Gohar urged the government against delaying the dialogue any further. Earlier, PMLN Senator Irfan Siddiqui—who is part of the government’s negotiation committee—had urged the PTI to decide whether it wanted to engage with the government or the establishment. “Negotiations cannot be conducted simultaneously through multiple channels,” he had said, referring to a recent interaction between Chief of Army Staff Gen. Asim Munir and Gohar and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur.
While Gandapur had claimed the two presented “all matters and demands of the party directly to Gen. Asim Munir,” Gohar said the meeting was restricted to security concerns and did not merit any criticism from the government. “We want to continue dialogue with the government. However, we have a condition that a judicial commission should be formed,” he said.
To a question, Gohar said Khan had instructed him to not participate in any fourth round of talks if the government did not constitute a judicial commission. He said his party was waiting for the government to give a positive response, adding the process would be meaningless if the judicial commissions were not formed.
In a formal Charter of Demands, the PTI has demanded judicial commissions into the May 9, 2023 riots and the Nov. 26 protest in Islamabad. Additionally, it has sought the release of all “political prisoners,” including Imran Khan. The demands stress that further dialogue cannot continue if the two separate commissions are not formed.
However, two members of the government’s team—Siddiqui and Adviser to the P.M. Rana Sanaullah—have slammed the demands as a “charge-sheet” against the government. They have also pointed out that both commissions seeks to probe events that are already pending before court.