PTI missed out on 'major relief' by quitting negotiations: Irfan Siddiqui

• Senator says PTI wanted to exit dialogue so it made up an excuse.
• Alleges PTI's epicentre of hope has always been an individual.
• Rejects any raid carried out on SIC chairman's seminary.

After the high-stakes talks between the government and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) ended inconclusively, Senator Irfan Siddiqui, the treasury's negotiation committee's spokesperson, claimed on Saturday that the Imran Khan-founded party "missed an opportunity to get a big relief".

Speaking on Geo News programme Jirga, Senator Siddiqui said the former ruling party was not built for dialogue or negotiations.

He reiterated that both committees had mutually agreed to proceed with negotiations, irrespective of external developments.

The ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) senator refuted reports of any raid on Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) chief Sahibzada Hamid Raza's seminary in Faisalabad. "PTI was looking to withdraw from the dialogue and thus it made up an excuse to do so," he said.

It is noteworthy that the PTI had also protested against the alleged raid on Raza's madrassah and termed it one of the reasons for ending dialogue with the government.

To a question related to the new US president becoming a beacon of hope for the PTI, Siddiqui mocked the former ruling party, saying that Donald Trump had more [important] tasks to accomplish.

Ruling out any possibility of the PTI receiving any form of relief from the US, Siddiqui added that the party's epicentre of hope had always been an individual, whether Musharraf or another influential figure and that "it has now set sights on Trump."

The PML-N senator's statement came after his interview to a Saudi Arabian media outlet Urdu News, in which he said that the PTI-government negotiations ended without a deadlock or breakdown and that the government's committee had been dissolved.

Also, contradicting Siddiqui's remarks regarding the dissolution of the government negotiation committee, sources told Geo News earlier today that National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq had decided to retain it.

With the NA spokesperson confirming the speaker's decision, it is worth noting that the NA Secretariat has not denotified the committee yet.

The PTI abruptly quit the talks after holding three meetings with the ruling parties' negotiation committee, maintaining that the government failed to constitute judicial commissions on May 9, 2023, and November 26, 2024, events within the seven-day deadline in line with its "charter of demands".

Following the opposition party's move, PM Shehbaz had also offered to form a parliamentary committee to advance talks with PTI two days ago, however, the latter rejected it.

Meanwhile, the government also rejected speculations of "ongoing backdoor talks" between the former ruling party and the establishment.

The dialogue between the PML-N-led government and the PTI commenced in late December after months of heightened political tensions.