Islamabad
\nPTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan on Saturday urged the need for continuing to pursue \u201ccomprehensive, unconditional\u201d negotiations between the PTI and the federal government amid hesitation in the party.
\nPTI leaders had recently agreed to negotiate with the federal government if the offer was \u2018serious\u2019 but party founder Imran Khan had criticised the leadership on Thursday for acting like \u2018all is well\u2019 and reiterated his call for civil disobedience if the government continued to ignore his demands.
\nSenior PTI leader Asad Qaiser had subsequently clarified a day ago that the party had not yet initiated dialogue with the government and talks could be held only after the acceptance of three demands, including the release of Imran and other party activists and the constitution of a judicial commission comprising senior Supreme Court judges to probe violent May 9, 2023, and Nov 26, 2024, incidents.
\nHowever, speaking to reporters outside the Islamabad District and Sessions Court, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan said he was \u201cin favour of comprehensive, unconditional negotiations at every stage\u201d.
\nHe added: \u201cIt is essential for democracy to find political solutions to political issues.
\nWe will proceed in accordance with the law.\u201d
\nWhen asked if the party\u2019s demands were conditions for negotiations, he clarified, \u201cWe have not given any conditions, these are our demands. We will negotiate on these demands.\u201d
\n\u201cWe did have contact with the government, but we were disconnected at a critical stage,\u201d the chairman said in response to a question about prior attempts at talks.
\n\u201cWe are hopeful we will reestablish contact and improve the situation [\u2026] When there are negotiations, all issues will be resolved,\u201d he told reporters.
\n\u201cEnough is enough. Let us put a stop to everything and move towards improvement.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gohar files complaint against PM Shehbaz
\nHowever, a day ago Gohar had filed a petition with the Islamabad Judicial Magistrate against Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, the Islamabad police chief and others over the alleged deaths of 12 PTI workers during the November 26 protests.
\nAccording to the petition, the respondents \u201cformulated a plan to deal with peaceful protesters in order to sabotage the constitutional and fundamental rights\u201d. Gohar accused Naqvi of declaring \u201chis intentions that orders had been issued to law enforcement agencies to use lethal force against unarmed citizens\u201d through statements made in the media.
\nThe petition said that on Naqvi\u2019s directives, the other respondents \u201cheld consultations and conspired to arrange a coordinated attack on the peaceful protesters\u201d.
\nThe petition accused the PM and the cabinet ministers named as respondents of ordering authorities to use lethal force to \u201cteach a lesson\u201d to the demonstrators on November 26. It listed the 12 PTI workers who were allegedly killed in the protest, as well as 38 workers who were wounded and 139 others reportedly missing.
\n\u201cTheir actions constitute not only a gross abuse of power but also criminal offences under the Pakistan Penal Code \u2026 and violations of international human rights standards,\u201d the petition read. \u201cThis premeditated conspiracy of the accused to kill unarmed citizens represents a grave assault on the principles of democracy, the rule of law, and the sanctity of human life.\u201d
\nGohar pleaded that the respondents be summoned through non-bailable arrest warrants and punished and sentenced as per the law.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Islamabad PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan on Saturday urged the need for continuing to pursue \u201ccomprehensive, unconditional\u201d negotiations between the PTI and the federal government amid hesitation in the party. PTI leaders had recently agreed to negotiate with the federal government if the offer was \u2018serious\u2019 but party founder Imran Khan had criticised the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-449418","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-top-news"},"yoast_head":"\n