The Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (Fazl) on Friday agreed to participate in a multi-party conference being organized by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) ahead of its long march to Islamabad on Sept. 27.
According to a statement, both sides met at JUIF chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s residence and discussed the possibility of a joint opposition strategy on key national issues.
Speaking with the media after the meeting, PTI Chairman Gohar Ali Khan said opposition parties would adopt a joint strategy inside Parliament. “We will take all political parties into confidence on national issues,” he said, adding the MPC would discuss the creation of new provinces. He said the opposition would formulate its future strategy under a united platform.
To a question, he clarified that the PTI had not sought the JUIF’s support for the long march.
JUIF leader Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri, meanwhile, said the MPC would also discuss rising unrest in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. “Patriotic political parties will play their role and we will evolve a joint strategy,” he said. He also noted that all opposition parties were concerned about rising inflation, adding the Jamaat-e-Islami is already protesting in this regard and the JUIF is organizing workers’ conventions nationwide.
The PTI has yet to announce a date for the MPC.
Also on Friday, Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Mehmood Khan Achakzai wrote on X that the process of consultations had been initiated regarding arranging a meeting between himself and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.