Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: Wheels within wheels. That defines Pakistan and its politics.
A week, after the Sharifs floated a trial balloon that crises-ridden Pakistan should re-engage its “neighbor”—meaning India—the nearly bankrupt country is agog with speculations that the ruling regime might reopen a way to New Delhi.
And that the omnipresent Pakistan Army, to force the Sharifs to desist from such a “misadventure,” is re-engaging jailed former Prime Minister Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi and his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) outfit to come to some sort of détente.
Amid these speculations, PTI said on Tuesday it had “no interest” in engaging in discussions with anyone and firmly denied any rumors of “secret negotiations” with the powerful establishment the people know as “namaloom” (Unknown!)
Earlier this month, the English daily “Dawn” had reported that Imran Khan told reporters at Adiala Jail after the hearing of the Al-Qadir Trust case that he was ready to “hold a dialogue with anyone for the sake of the country.”
The PTI founder said if he could hold talks with former army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa, who he later accused of being instrumental in the fall of the PTI government in April 2022, then he could meet anyone since the country was passing through a difficult phase.
Imran Khan said a few leaders in the PTI are still in contact with the establishment, apparently for negotiations. However, he did not elaborate, the report said.
However, on Tuesday, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Khan told reporters outside Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi: “Today, I asked the party’s founding chairman Imran Khan if some institutions had contacted him for the talks. Imran Khan clearly said that no one had contacted him,”
No one had even contacted him for dialogue, nor had he received any message for talks from anyone, Dawn quoted Gohar Khan as saying.
His clarification came days after it was reported in a section of the media that Imran Khan had revealed that some PTI leaders were still in contact with the establishment (the military).
The same is the case with the other party leadership. Even if we receive any message from anyone for dialogues, we will inform the media, Gohar said.
Whenever PTI is interested in dialogues, they would be held openly and the media would be informed about it.
He also said PTI would not ally with any party that has “stolen” its mandate in the February 8 parliamentary elections.
However, the party would continue its efforts and struggle for the rights of the people of Pakistan.