Attempting to bridge the rift between the two coalition partners in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Wednesday met Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) chief Sirajul Haq following which he told reporters that the JI was closer to PTI than any other political force in the country.
Speaking at a joint-press conference with the JI chief, Khan said that Pakistan was created in the name of Islam and that both the parties share the same ideology.
Wednesday’s meeting comes against the backdrop of a recent rift between the coalition partners in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa as the PTI leadership came down hard on the JI chief, who had told a rally in Mansehra that both the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the PTI were “two sides of the same coin”, were not sincere in solving people’s problems and only concerned with serving their own political interests.
Khan, later in a statement, regretted that Siraj had chosen to club the PTI with PML-N and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), while conveniently overlooking the number of NAB cases against both Nawaz Sharif and Asif Zardari. He demanded that the JI “stop playing on both sides of the wicket” and tell the people of Pakistan where it stood.
Addressing the press conference, Khan reiterated that issues relating to masses would never be resolved until a true elected government comes into power. He said that all political parties, including the JI were on the same page regarding “rigging in the 2013 elections”.
Khan claimed that the ruling party was covering up the rigging, which he alleged took place in last year’s polls. “PML-M members are hiding behind stay orders,” he added.
He also said that the ECP would open the NA-121 constituency for vote audit on Friday and if it was proven that NA Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq had rigged the polls, he along with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif would have no option but to step down from their offices.
Speaking on the occasion, Sirajul Haq said that the JI has been supporting the demands made by Khan’s party right from the beginning. He said the two parties face many similar issues.
“Tehreek-i-Insaf and Jamaat-i-Islami are free to make their own political decisions… and share the same goal of abolition of status quo from the country,” he said.
Haq claimed that the prevailing system has failed and the country needs immediate electoral reforms.