MWM welcomes, JI weighs alliance offer from PTI

The Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) began its consultation on Tuesday on joining the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-backed independents to form a coalition government in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P), while the Muttahida Wahdatul Muslimeen (MWM) welcomed the alliance with the PTI.

Earlier, in the day, the PTI announced making a government at the Centre and in Punjab with the support of the MWM and in K-P with the JI. Qaisar Sharif, the JI central information secretary, confirmed that both parties were engaged in discussions shortly after the elections.

Sharif said that the PTI’s proposal for a coalition government in K-P came under discussion during a meeting in Islamabad. However, he clarified that JI had not yet provided a definitive answer. “Consultations are under way, and a response to the PTI will be delivered in due course,” he said.

Separately, MWM chief Allama Raja Nasir Abbas expressed wholehearted enthusiasm for his party’s alliance with PTI. He affirmed his party’s steadfast support for Imran since the “regime change” events in April 2022, vowing allegiance “till the last drop of our blood”.

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“We advocate unity in Pakistan and aspire to witness progress in our country,” he told a private news channel. There were no ulterior motives or demands made to the PTI, he said, adding that the events surrounding the PTI were unjust.

Expressing regret over the recent laws, which he alleged, were aimed at suppressing the PTI, Abbas denounced the promotion of certain political parties through an agenda in a democratic culture. “I hope sanity prevails now,” he said.

“We have conveyed to Imran that we stand by him on his principles until the last drop of our blood,” he said. In a separate statement, he underscored that the MWM belonged to Imran, stating, “He [Imran] can decide whatever he wants regarding this party, and we will accept it unconditionally and willingly.”