Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif Invites PTI for Talks Amid Political Tensions

In Islamabad, Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has shown readiness to resume discussions with the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party. He proposed forming a parliamentary committee to tackle ongoing issues. This was discussed during a federal cabinet meeting where Sharif mentioned previous talks initiated by PTI, which included written demands submitted through the National Assembly Speaker. However, PTI canceled a scheduled meeting on January 28.

Sharif emphasized the importance of responding to PTI's written demands in writing. He recalled that after the 2018 elections, when the opposition entered Parliament with black armbands, then-Prime Minister Imran Khan had started forming a parliamentary committee to investigate election concerns. Sharif urged PTI to resume talks and collaborate on forming a new committee to investigate the elections of 2018 and 2024.

PTI chairman Barrister Gohar Khan accused the government of avoiding dialogue and ignoring their demand for a judicial commission. He stated that PTI had formally requested this to address their concerns, but the government did not respond. Gohar Khan claimed that the government was deliberately delaying talks and not taking serious steps towards resolution.

The Pakistan National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq had invited both PTI and government representatives for a fourth round of talks, but PTI did not attend. The government announced that its negotiation committee would wait until January 31 for PTI to reconsider its decision to end talks. Discussions between the government and opposition began in December to ease political tensions, with three meetings held so far.