LAHORE
\nPTI Senator Ejaz Chaudhry on Saturday met Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) chief Maulana Saad Rizvi, with a TLP spokesperson saying that \u201cdoors never close in politics\u201d.
\nThe TLP chief was released from jail on Thursday after more than seven months following a deal between the government and the party, the contents of which are yet to be publicly shared.
\nRizvi was taken into custody on deputy commissioner Lahore\u2019s directives in April shortly after the party announced countrywide protests.
\nChaudhry, in his meeting with Rizvi at the Rehmatul Lil Alameen Mosque in Lahore, also presented a bouquet to the TLP chief and congratulated him on his release from prison.
\nBy showing up with a bouquet, Chaudhry made good on a promise he had made earlier this month. Speaking to Geo News, he said: \u201cI will present a bouquet to Saad Rizvi when he is released.\u201d
\nSpeaking to the media after the meeting, Chaudhry said he came to meet Rizvi as a gesture of goodwill and that it is the government\u2019s responsibility to stay in contact with leaders who are \u201cdifferent from others\u201d.
\n\u201cIt is the responsibility of the state to build such ties with the people that create an atmosphere of harmony,\u201d Chaudhry added.
\nThe PTI leader said he had expressed satisfaction over the government\u2019s agreement with TLP, and following the implementation of the deal, he had arrived at Rizvi\u2019s residence to meet him.
\nIn response to a journalist\u2019s question whether he had visited Rizvi after seeking permission from Prime Minister Imran Khan, he said he \u201cnever meets\u201d anyone without the premier\u2019s nod.
\nResponding to another question, he said it was too early to say whether the prime minister would hold a meeting with the TLP chief.
\nGovt strikes secretive deal with TLP
\nRizvi\u2019s release on November 18 follows days of protests staged by the then-proscribed party.
\nThe TLP announced an end to the prolonged sit-in after the government held successful talks and reached a deal with the party on October 31, which Mufti Muneeb-Ur-Rehman declared a \u201cvictory\u201d for Islam.
\nHowever, the contents of the deal are still not known. Federal Minister for Interior Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed on November 13 said that details of the agreement would be revealed \u201cwithin 10 days\u201d.
\nOn November 2, the government began implementing the secretive accord with TLP, with reports suggesting that it had released more than 800 supporters of the party arrested across Punjab.
\nIn compliance with the deal, the Punjab government, on November 4, decided to remove the names of at least 90 activists of the then proscribed outfit from the Fourth Schedule of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997. In addition, the Punjab government decided to release 100 other activists of the organisation from different jails in the province.
\nThree days later, on November 7, the TLP ceased to be a proscribed organisation after the government accorded approval to the Ministry of Interior\u2019s summary asking for its removal from the First Schedule of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997.
\nOn November 10, a Punjab Home Department notification was issued removing Saad Rizvi\u2019s name from the Fourth Schedule of Anti-Terrorism Act 1997 with immediate effect.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
LAHORE PTI Senator Ejaz Chaudhry on Saturday met Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) chief Maulana Saad Rizvi, with a TLP spokesperson saying that \u201cdoors never close in politics\u201d. The TLP chief was released from jail on Thursday after more than seven months following a deal between the government and the party, the contents of which are yet […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[248,158,272,274],"class_list":{"0":"post-228584","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-national","7":"tag-lahore","8":"tag-pti","9":"tag-saad-rizvi","10":"tag-tlp"},"yoast_head":"\n