PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan on Wednesday called for political dialogue to break the country’s continuing political deadlock, while criticising the arrests of party leaders and members of PTI founder Imran Khan’s family.
Speaking to reporters in Lahore, where he had gone to express solidarity with Imran’s arrested sisters, Gohar said political disagreements should be settled through negotiations rather than confrontation.
“Political disputes can only be settled through political means. In politics, no word is final,” he said.
Gohar claimed that four members of Imran’s family and eight members of the National Assembly were currently in custody, while some provincial ministers remained missing. He described the situation as part of what PTI considers political victimisation of its leadership and the former prime minister’s family.
Despite the tensions, Gohar said PTI remained willing to negotiate and knew which stakeholders could be approached to help resolve the political crisis. He said Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party Chairman Mehmood Khan Achakzai, Majlis Wahdat-e-Muslimeen chief Allama Raja Nasir Abbas Jafri and PTI leaders were prepared to participate in talks aimed at ending the impasse.
However, he maintained that previous public offers of negotiations from PTI had not received a serious response from the federal government.
“There is currently no meaningful dialogue,” Gohar said, accusing the government of failing to demonstrate sufficient seriousness about resolving the dispute.
His remarks come ahead of PTI’s planned September 27 march towards Islamabad, announced in August to press for Imran Khan’s release. The party is preparing a central convoy from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, with supporters from other parts of the country expected to join before moving towards the federal capital.
The federal government has warned PTI against proceeding with the planned march.