The federal government has agreed to convene the National Assembly and the Senate on Tuesday, October 13, as the PTI long march moves through Khyber Pakhtunkhwa towards Swabi, Dawn reported after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met President Asif Ali Zardari on Saturday.
PTI long march: where it stands
KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi’s march set out on October 4 after two rounds of talks with the government ended without a deal. By the schedule the party announced, marchers were to stay overnight in Peshawar on October 8, Charsadda on October 9, Mardan on October 10 and Swabi on October 11, and Afridi has invited people from across the country to join at the Swabi Interchange. The PTI is demanding the release of Imran Khan, who has been jailed since August 2023, and of his sisters.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi has said the government will not allow the party to disrupt the capital, citing an Islamabad High Court order of September 14 that bars parties from occupying public roads and other sites in Islamabad.
What the Centre and KP disagree on
At Saturday’s meeting Shehbaz Sharif was joined by Ishaq Dar, Rana Sanaullah, Mohsin Naqvi, Attorney General Mansoor Usman Awan and Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar, while the PPP’s Sherry Rehman and Naveed Qamar also took part. The dispute between the federal PML-N government and the PTI-led KP government centres mainly on counterterrorism policy. The PTI says it is excluded from security decisions in the province, which the Centre denies. Federal ministers have called the march risky while KP faces security challenges and have linked the policy dispute to the possibility of an emergency or governor’s rule in the province. One federal minister said the Centre has not finished considering an emergency in KP.
Fazlur Rehman steps in
Shehbaz Sharif also phoned JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman to discuss easing tensions and invited him to talks at the PM House. Rehman accepted, and a meeting is expected soon. The JUI-F says he is acting as a facilitator rather than a mediator and wants a multi-party conference in Parliament to address the political and security issues.
What to watch next
The PTI’s Swabi stop on October 11 comes two days before the separate National Assembly and Senate sessions on October 13, where the security situation is expected to come up. The Centre has not announced a decision on an emergency in KP, and the outcome of the Fazlur Rehman meeting will show whether talks between the two sides can restart.
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