Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif is confident that the armed forces and other defence-related institutions were close to a consensus on peace talks with militant Taliban but is still not clear whether an All Parties Conference would be useful or to convene a meeting of parliamentary parties heads to seek consensus on the mechanism for these talks.
He is still in process of preparing grounds for holding a conference of all parties. However, he is also advised to look to a proposal to limit the proposed APC to the gathering of leaders of all parliamentary groups in the two houses of Parliament.
“The defence establishment as well as concerned government institutions have come close to the government’s opinion on using the option of holding direct talks with the Taliban,” the premier told Maulana Fazlur Rehman chief of his own faction of JUI who had a detailed meeting with him covering all political and security issues on Thursday.
Talking to this correspondent after the meeting with the PM, JUI-F chief said he had impressed upon the premier that talks with the militants was the last option left as the use of military might remain no more a viable solution. He said he has also invited the attention of premier towards the advantages of ‘tribal jirga’ for holding fruitful talks with the Taliban. “There is also a need to restore the shattering confidence of the Taliban in the process of creating understanding through dialogue.”
The JUI-F leader who is seriously concerned about the alliance of all parties including the ruling PML-N against his son in by-elections on NA-25 Tank-cum-D I Khan, got assurance from the premier that he would issue instructions to the provincial chapter of his party leadership not to be part of alliance against the JUI-F candidate. All the opposition parties including the PPP, PML-N have joined hands in shape of a ‘grand alliance’ to defeat JUI-F candidate in the by polls.
A former deputy speaker Faisal Karim Kundi while confirming the report to this correspondent at Parliament House on Thursday said “I am not ready to give up the effort to defeat Maulana’s candidate who exhausted all efforts to make the PPP withdraw its support to the PTI candidate. He even went to former Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani in Multan to ask me to budge from my stand but his request was declined,” he asserted.
It may be mentioned that the Election Commission of Pakistan had postponed by polls on NA-25 for later date in September after receiving terror threats while another seat NA-27 Lakki on which women votes polling on some 10 polling stations is to be held has almost slipped out of the JUI-F hands since the difference of over 9,000 votes may be unassailable for it.
The Maulana said with confidence that the prime minister had told him that a summary for induction of one party representative in the federal cabinet has been sent and he (most probably Akram Durrani) will be sworn in, in due course of time. “Not only we would get a ministry but several National Assembly and Senate Committees would also come to us but with a dignity,” he remarked.
The JUI-F chief said he reminded the premier that his opinion about incompetence of the PTI to run the province had been vindicated and the incumbent PTI government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had failed to deliver as it was not capable of maintaining law and order as well citing the widespread terrorist attacks in the length and breadth of the province during last three months of its power.
“I also emphasised on the premier that my earlier suggestion that the JUI-F must be consulted on formation of government in Balochistan since it was abreast of the whole situation and could have contributed a lot.
The Maulana said the prime minister looked convinced that the JUI-F and other political parties should have been left at their own to resolve the issues without central government’s intervening.
He also agreed with Maulana’s argument that the PTI government had failed to bring stability and to deliver on any front in the province.
