Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah dismissed rumors of secret negotiations between the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and the establishment, stating that no dialogue was taking place with the former ruling party.
“Political matters can only be addressed through formal channels, which PTI has abandoned,” said Sanaullah during a televised interview.
These remarks followed PTI’s decision to skip the fourth round of negotiations, citing the government’s failure to form judicial commissions to investigate the May 9 riots and the November 2024 protest in Islamabad.
The dialogue process between the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N)-led government and PTI began in late December after prolonged political tensions. However, despite three sessions and PTI’s submission of a written charter of demands, little progress has been made.
Sources indicated that PTI representatives, including Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, met Chief of Army Staff General Asim Munir. PTI confirmed that all party demands were directly presented to General Munir.
However, a statement from security officials denied any political context to the meeting, asserting that reports on the discussions were misinterpreted. PTI also clarified that no dialogue was ongoing with any other entity.
Sanaullah criticized PTI for “damaging the country’s politics over the past decade” and accused the party of evading meaningful negotiations. He added that PTI would have received a response from the government had they attended the fourth round of talks.
On the topic of forming a judicial commission, Sanaullah remarked that no judge would likely join under the current polarized circumstances.
Addressing PTI’s threat of protests, Sanaullah emphasized that the law would take its course if the party resorted to street demonstrations. “In a democratic system, issues are resolved through dialogue, not protests,” he concluded.
