ISLAMABAD: The Opposition has criticized the PTI-led Federal Government for its decision to hold talks with some groups of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) without consulting it and has asked premier Imran Khan to take the Parliament into confidence over the issue.
A few days ago, Prime Minister Imran Khan had revealed in an interview with TRT World that the government of Pakistan was holding peace talks with some groups of the TTP.
Senator Irfan Siddiqui, senior leader of Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) has said dialogue with the TTP was a very sensitive issue. It was not appropriate to keep the Opposition in the dark over it.
He referred to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s move to include all stakeholders in the process of peace talks with militants. “Negotiations in the Nawaz Sharif tenure were approved by Parliament,” he said.
He demanded the government immediately convene a session of the Parliament to discuss the issue further.
Shazia Marri, senior leader of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) also flayed the government, questioning the terms based on which it intended to forgive the banned outfit.
In his interview to TRT World, the prime minister admitted that the Afghan Taliban were involved in both parties talking to each other. “I think some of the Pakistani Taliban groups actually want to talk to our government. You know, for some peace, for some reconciliation,” he had said.
When asked to confirm whether Pakistan is actually in talks with the TTP, the premier had clarified to say that talks are ongoing “with some of them”.
He said that the Afghan Taliban are “helping”, in the sense that the talks are taking place in Afghanistan.
The premier said that these talks, for disarmament, if successful, will lead to the government “forgiving” them, “and then they [will] become normal citizens”.
Stressing that he does expect for some sort of deal to emerge with the TTP, he had said: “I do not believe in military solutions. I am anti-military solutions. So I always believe that you know, as a politician, political dialogue is the way forward, which I always believed was the case in Afghanistan with the US.”
The premier had noted he always believed that a non-military solution was the only way forward for Afghanistan — and he has reiterated it time and again on national, international forums.
Read more: Sooner or later US will have to recognize Taliban govt: PM Imran Khan
