PTI's Asad Qaiser, NA Speaker Ayaz Sadiq 'agree' to tone down tensions

• Both leaders agreed to work towards political cooperation.
• NA Speaker Ayaz Sadiq to address hardliners within PML-N.
• Asad Qaiser seeks consultation within the PTI for progress.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) senior leader Asad Qaiser and National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq have agreed to ease political tensions, sources revealed on Thursday.

This development followed a meeting between Qaiser and Sadiq, who is a top leader of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), the sources said, as the Imran Khan-founded PTI continues to agitate.

The two leaders discussed the importance of reducing polarisation and finding common ground for the greater national interest, the well-placed sources added.

According to the insiders, the meeting focused on bridging the gap between the former ruling party and the government by encouraging dialogue and mutual understanding.

Sadiq suggested that both sides should work on persuading their respective hardliners to adopt a more moderate stance for the betterment of the country.

Qaiser, in turn, expressed a willingness to consult with his party members to promote cooperation. Both leaders agreed to ensure transparency in the negotiation process moving forward.

Their meeting was reported a day earlier as an "icebreaker". The sources had said that the embattled PTI and the government expressed willingness to sit together at the negotiation table without any preconditions.

However, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar claimed no formal discussions with the former ruling party have started.

He further said that while informal exchanges occur occasionally, official discussions have not begun between the two sides, adding that neither communication channels have been restored with the Imran Khan-led party nor have committees commenced negotiations.

Can civil disobedience be called off?

While the party has not announced taking to the streets once again, it has said that it will begin a civil disobedience movement later this month if the government does not accept its demands, including the repeal of the 26th Constitutional Amendment.

PTI leader Shaukat Yousafzai told Geo News that if negotiations with the government commence, the call for civil disobedience would be withdrawn.

However, he warned that if talks do not begin, the government should prepare for a civil disobedience movement. Yousafzai emphasised that the PTI believes in the power of dialogue, but expressed frustration with the government's lack of seriousness in pursuing these discussions.

Yousafzai pointed out that in the past, the government has always initiated the process of negotiations, not the opposition.

According to Yousafzai, there have been no negotiations between PTI and the government thus far.

The PTI leader urged the government to take the matter seriously and engage in dialogue with the opposition to resolve the ongoing political deadlock.

PTI Secretary-General Salman Akram, in an interview with Geo News, responded to questions about the sudden shift in the party's stance towards negotiations.

He emphasised that negotiations should always be an ongoing process. According to Akram, the core purpose of protests is to open channels of communication, and dialogue is essential in addressing the concerns of the people.

He said that the PTI founder-chairman has called for the formation of a committee to initiate negotiations.

The ex-prime minister, he said, made it clear that the PTI is open to dialogue with anyone who seeks a constitutional and legal solution to the ongoing issues.

He reiterated that the party is ready to engage with anyone who attempts to find a way forward in line with the law and the Constitution.