Pakistan's Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq held a meeting in Islamabad on Sunday and discussed Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf's (PTI) "attitude" during the talks held between government and opposition, The Express Tribune reported.
The two leaders also discussed matters of mutual interest and the overall situation in Pakistan, The Express Tribune reported, citing Radio Pakistan. He appreciated Sadiq's effort to foster talks between the treasury and opposition benches. Ayaz Sadiq and Mohsin Naqvi expressed satisfaction over improving economic conditions of Pakistan. The two leaders also spoke about government's initiaves to address public issues. In a post on X, Naqvi stated, "Met with Speaker National Assembly Ayaz Sadiq. Discussed matters of mutual interest and political affairs, including the government and opposition dialogue and the PTI's behavioir. Ayaz Sadiq's efforts are commendable, though." Earlier, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif blamed PTI for the failure of dialogue, citing the breakdown in three sittings. However, he expressed government's willingness to resume talks with PTI. He offered to constitute a parliamentary committee to address ongoing issues, The Express Tribune reported. During the federal cabinet meeting on January 30, Sharif recalled earlier talks with PTI, which started with the formation of a committee after PTI's offer. He said that Imran Khan-founded party had submitted written demands through National Assembly Speaker, which the government was expected to respond to in writing. However, PTI cancelled the scheduled meeting on January 28. Shehbaz Sharif stressed that it was logical to respond to the written demands in writing. He recounted that after the elections in 2018, when the opposition entered Parliament with black armbands, Pakistan's then-PM Imran Khan had initiated constituting a parliamentary committee to probe concerns related to election. He said that PTI never constituted a judicial commission but rather a committee. Pakistan PM called on PTI to resume talks and work together to form a new committee to probe elections held in 2018 and 2024 and bring out the facts. Meanwhile, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan rejected Shehbaz Sharif's offer to hold talks and accused the government of being responsible for collapse of dialogue, as per the report. Gohar Ali Khan said, "We had put forward only two demands: the release of political prisoners and the formation of judicial commissions for the May 9 and November 26 events." He said, "The government shut the door for talks by not accepting these demands." Talks between the government and the opposition began in December to address political tensions. Since then, the two sides have met thrice. However, PTI representatives did not attend the fourth round of dialogue with the government which was scheduled on January 28. (ANI)
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