Government and opposition negotiators held their first round of talks in Islamabad on Friday but failed to reach a breakthrough, leaving the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) planned October 4 long march still on track.
The meeting, chaired by National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq, brought together Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, presidential adviser Rana Sanaullah and PPP Senator Sherry Rehman on the government side, while PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Khan and Senate Opposition Leader Allama Raja Nasir Abbas represented the opposition.
PTI intends to march on Islamabad on October 4 to demand the release of party founder Imran Khan, a move the government has warned could force it to impose governor’s rule or a state of emergency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
“Parliament is the only forum where solutions to issues can be found,” Speaker Sadiq said after the meeting, urging both sides to keep talking rather than take the dispute to the streets.
Senator Sherry Rehman was more direct, saying PTI “will have to call it off rather than postponing or deferring” the march, while officials said law enforcement already has “arrangements in place to stop” the protest if it goes ahead.
The opposition, for its part, has asked the government to engage “with integrity” in resolving the standoff, according to Raja Nasir Abbas.
A second round of talks is scheduled for Saturday at 2pm, giving both sides one more opportunity to defuse the situation before the march date arrives.
