Information Minister Attaullah Tarar criticized the PTI’s decision to suspend negotiations, stating that the government was considering a “middle ground” by proposing a committee instead of a judicial commission.
“There is no need to constitute a commission…we were deliberating on a middle ground to move things forward,” Tarar said during an appearance on a private news channel on Thursday. He accused the PTI of acting with “malicious intentions” and taking a “hasty decision”.
“Our response to the PTI’s demands was yet to come,” he said, adding that “extensive discussions” had been held on the matter. He further criticized the party, saying: “They should have found a legitimate excuse to prove that they had been victims. Now the responsibility falls on them.”
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan called off talks with the PML-N-led government, alleging that it failed to form a judicial commission within the promised seven-day deadline.
Speaking to the media outside Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi, PTI president Advocate Gohar Ali Khan said the decision was taken after Khan expressed frustration over the government’s inaction.
“The founder of PTI has categorically announced that no further rounds of talks will take place,” Gohar said. “The government has made announcements but has not yet fulfilled them, which is why Imran Khan decided to end the negotiations.”
The talks, which began in December 2024 to reduce political tensions, have had three sessions so far but have made little progress.
The PTI had demanded the formation of two judicial commissions: one to probe the May 9, 2023 riots and another to probe the November 26, 2024 crackdown on PTI supporters in Islamabad. The party also sought the release of “political prisoners.”
