{"id":17066,"date":"2026-10-03T12:30:51","date_gmt":"2026-10-03T12:30:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/paksouch.com\/?p=17066"},"modified":"2026-10-03T12:30:52","modified_gmt":"2026-10-03T12:30:52","slug":"talks-begin-at-parliament-house-as-pti-objects-to-extreme-steps-against-march-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/paksouch.com\/?p=17066","title":{"rendered":"Talks begin at Parliament House as PTI objects to \u2018extreme steps\u2019 against march"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

ISLAMABAD: The second day of formal talks<\/a> between the government and the opposition have begun at Parliament House on Saturday, with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan saying his party had come in good faith but was surprised by attempts to stop its long march and talk of \u201cextreme steps\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Barrister Gohar also said his party wanted its long march to go ahead without an emergency or governor\u2019s rule being imposed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The talks are being chaired by National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, who said yesterday\u2019s session had taken place in a very pleasant atmosphere and hoped all sides would carry the dialogue forward in the same spirit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking to journalists before the meeting, Barrister Gohar condemned what he called irresponsible statements by some ministers. \u201cTalks should be held for the betterment of democracy. They should not be limited to a photo session,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Asked about a meeting held before the talks and whether he had met Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, he replied with a smile that the meeting would be with the government. \u201cPolitical people keep meeting. This is necessary for the country and democracy,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is an important round. We have come with good intentions,\u201d he told journalists before the meeting. He said talks were essential for the nation, the country and democracy, and that delays were common in important matters. The opposition delegation, including Barrister Gohar, Asad Qaiser and Allama Nasir Abbas, arrived at the Speaker\u2019s Chamber, and the talks began.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Earlier, members of the government\u2019s negotiating team, including Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, began arriving at Parliament House on Saturday for the with PTI, with the party\u2019s planned October 4 march and access to incarcerated founder Imran Khan among the key issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The talks are being held in the chamber of National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, who is facilitating them. Representatives of the government, the Pakistan Peoples Party and the opposition attended. According to the National Assembly Secretariat, the sides exchanged views in a constructive and cordial atmosphere<\/a> and stressed the need to resolve political issues through dialogue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About the Corps Commanders Conference, Gohar said that the party does not comment on it: \u201cThat is a press release of Pakistan\u2019s armed forces. We will move forward in accordance with the law and the Constitution. There should be no chaos, and terrorism should end.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PTI presses for access to Imran<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Speaking to journalists at Parliament House, PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja said the opposition had come to the talks with the confidence of the people and intended to put forward its basic demands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have come here to talk sense and reason,\u201d he said, adding that the people wanted to see Imran Khan released and justice restored.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Raja said the party would not compromise on Imran\u2019s health and that its primary demand was access to the PTI founder. He called for Imran to be examined by the medical board constituted by the Supreme Court, and said access should be granted to people the PTI founder trusted, arguing that this would improve the political dialogue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He also demanded relief for women prisoners, naming Bushra Bibi, Dr Yasmin Rashid and Imran\u2019s three sisters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf our demands are not accepted, we will stand with the Pakistani people until the very end,\u201d he said. He also criticised what he described as irresponsible conduct by some members of the negotiating committee, saying a one-sided narrative had been presented before the media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Government wants \u2018meaningful\u2019 talks<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Tariq Fazal Chaudhry said the government wanted the negotiations to be meaningful and result-oriented.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The government has also sought the postponement or cancellation of the October 4 march, according to reports on the negotiations. The PTI has maintained that its protest plans remain linked to the outcome of the dialogue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chaudhry criticised recent statements on X by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, saying such remarks could affect the talks. He said Afridi\u2019s remarks against political opponents and the government leadership were not appropriate for a chief minister and were \u201chighly uncivilised and condemnable\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Asked about the chief minister\u2019s tweet, PPP leader Sherry Rehman said she would not comment on it, adding that everyone had the right to make their own decisions. \u201cI do not comment. Negotiations are under way, and we will follow what our team decides,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PPP, government voice hope<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Rehman said her party had positive expectations of the talks and believed matters were better resolved through democratic means. \u201cWe hold negotiations on the basis of hope and have good expectations,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She said the PPP had always given space to democratic processes. \u201cParliament is a safe place where we can discuss everything,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rehman said all members of the negotiating teams were senior figures respected by the PPP, and urged that they be given space at the table. \u201cThe purpose of coming to the negotiating table is precisely to discuss these positions,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Federal Minister Amir Muqam, asked how hopeful he was, said there should be good expectations of the negotiations. \u201cWe should have good hopes from the negotiations,\u201d he said, adding that the two sides had listened to each other the previous day and that Saturday\u2019s outcome remained to be seen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The government\u2019s negotiating team includes Muqam, Rana Sanaullah, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, Talal Chaudhry and Tariq Fazal Chaudhry. The PPP is represented by Senator Rehman and MNAs Syed Naveed Qamar and Ejaz Hussain Jakhrani. The opposition delegation comprises Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, Senate Opposition Leader Allama Raja Nasir Abbas, Asad Qaiser, Amir Dogar, Raja and Haleem Adil Sheikh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Afridi says march will go ahead<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Separately, Afridi said the PTI would neither allow a repeat of the May 9, 2023<\/a> unrest nor let anyone create circumstances leading to similar violence. \u201cWe will neither allow May 9 to happen again nor will we let anyone do so,\u201d he said in a statement on X on Saturday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said the march would continue until the supremacy of the Constitution and law and an independent judiciary were restored. It will begin from Gandi Chowk in Lakki Marwat on October 4 and proceed towards Islamabad, passing through Karak and Kohat before reaching Matni near Peshawar on October 6. The PTI had earlier postponed its initial September 27 date. Party leaders have described the protest as peaceful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Afridi also criticised the federal government, alleging that political opponents were creating circumstances that could destabilise the country. He criticised remarks attributed to Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz on terrorism threats from neighbouring provinces and alleged that Pashtuns were being unfairly portrayed. He said terrorism should not be treated merely as a \u201cnarrative war\u201d, and claimed that peace could be restored in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa within 100 days if government policy changed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ISLAMABAD: The second day of formal talks between the government and the opposition have begun at Parliament House on Saturday, with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman..<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":17067,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-17066","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pakistan"],"featured_image_urls":{"full":["https:\/\/paksouch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Pak-Souch-Social-Media-Poster-31.png",800,947,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/paksouch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Pak-Souch-Social-Media-Poster-31-150x150.png",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/paksouch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Pak-Souch-Social-Media-Poster-31-253x300.png",253,300,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/paksouch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Pak-Souch-Social-Media-Poster-31-768x909.png",768,909,true],"large":["https:\/\/paksouch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Pak-Souch-Social-Media-Poster-31.png",800,947,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/paksouch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Pak-Souch-Social-Media-Poster-31.png",800,947,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/paksouch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Pak-Souch-Social-Media-Poster-31.png",800,947,false]},"author_info":{"info":["admin"]},"category_info":"Pakistan<\/a>","tag_info":"Pakistan","comment_count":"0","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/paksouch.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17066","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/paksouch.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/paksouch.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paksouch.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paksouch.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=17066"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/paksouch.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17066\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17068,"href":"https:\/\/paksouch.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17066\/revisions\/17068"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paksouch.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/17067"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/paksouch.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=17066"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paksouch.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=17066"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paksouch.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=17066"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}