The negotiation committee of the government Saturday said that the government is open to dialogue with the opposition parties holding Azadi March, however the law will take its course if they violated the agreement signed with the city administration.
Briefing media after chairing a meeting of the negotiation committee, Pervaiz Khattak said the government does not want any clash rather desires to settle the issue amicably. He said they are in contact with the Rahbar Committee of opposition and hoped that the opposition will not violate the agreement by moving forward to any other location for their protest. However, he categorically said that the prime minister will in no way tender his resignation, and resolved that the government will not succumb to the opposition’s threats and pressure tactics.
Khattak said it will set a bad precedent if an elected prime minister resigns on opposition’s demand. “We cannot accept (such) demands of a mob of 20,000-30,000 people. If we do it today, in future anyone can blackmail a democratically elected government in a similar way,” he said.
The minister said the government is not worried about the opposition’s Azadi March. However, he said, the speeches by opposition leaders maligning the national institutions are unfortunate. Speaking against the institutions which gave sacrifices for the country will be tantamount to enmity with the county, he noted. “If the participants of Azadi March move forward from the agreed venue, it will be tantamount to breaching the agreement which will compel the government to take action as per law,” he warned. “If anything is damaged, or anyone gets harmed by the Azadi March, then the responsibility of it will fall on the opposition, not the government as per the agreement,” he said.
The minister said those who in the past had opposed using the religion card are also present on the container. Hi said even now the government is willing to talk with the opposition, but they will need to put forward demands within the ambit of the constitution.
Replying to a question, Pervaiz Khattak said the core committee of the ruling PTI has decided to move courts against Maulana Fazlur Rehman for allegedly instigating public to attack the Prime Minister House.
Fazl had remarked that the public will detain Prime Minister Imran Khan at his residence and force him to resign, which the minister said is tantamount to instigating masses and is an act of mutiny. He said the case will be filed in the courts on Monday.
To another query, Khattak said those waving the flags of banned organisations in the march want to spread anarchy in the country. He said the government committee is in contact with Rahbar Committee of the opposition, adding he did not contact Maulana Fazlur Rehman directly.
To another query, Khattak said those waving the flags of banned organisations in the march want to spread anarchy in the country. He said the government committee is in contact with Rahbar Committee of the opposition, adding he did not contact Maulana Fazlur Rehman directly.
To another question, the minister said all the institutions are on the same page and that the army has always supported the democratic governments. He said the protest is just a tactic to pressurise the government and hinder its performance.
Khattak said the prime minister effectively pleaded the Kashmir case at the United Nations while being chairman of Kashmir committee during his tenure, Maulana Fazlur Rehman did nothing in this regard. He said the protest will help India because it can put the issue of Kashmir to the backburner.
Member of the government committee Federal Minister Shafqat Mehmood said Prime Minister Imran Khan has effectively raised the Kashmir issue on every forum while Maulana Fazlur Rehman was working on its own agenda, adding the Indian media is also giving extensive coverage to the march.
Speaking on the occasion, PTI leader Asad Umar called out PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif for alleging that the current government has immense support from the country’s institutions. He asked Sharif how his family could host the Indian prime minister at private gatherings at their home if they did not have the military’s support. “Did the army stop you from building schools and hospitals, or fixing the police and judicial systems?” he asked, addressing the PML-N president.
Religious Affairs Minister Pir Nurul Haq Qadri and Special Assistant to PM Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan were also present on the occasion.
