‘Govt still open for talks’: Tarar accuses JI of breaching agreement on sit-in venue

Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting, Attaullah Tarar accused Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) of breaching the agreement with the government about concluding their protest against inflation with a rally at Liaquat Bagh. However, the government remains open to dialogue, he added.

"When it was agreed to hold the rally at Liaquat Bagh, the march towards Islamabad is incomprehensible," he said while addressing a press conference alongside Amir Muqam in Islamabad on Friday.

Tarar emphasised that the government is still willing to engage in talks with Jamaat-e-Islami.

Reacting to Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur’s speech at the Bannu rally, Tarar remarked, "We understand his constraints. He reassures in the Apex Committee, but speaks differently in public. After the decision to bring back TTP terrorists, terrorism has increased."

Tarar criticised the CM Gandapur further, saying, "What should have been done is to outline your actions against terrorism. They have made an agreement with a fake artificial intelligence institution, uncertified by any organisation, which will not benefit the youth."

Also read: Multiple arrests as Islamabad police crackdown on JI sit-in

Meanwhile, the Islamabad police have arrested numerous participants of the Jamaat-e-Islami sit-in at the federal capital’s D-Chowk, with ongoing efforts to detain more.

The arrested individuals have been transported in prisoner vans, and the routes leading to D-Chowk have been blocked with containers by the police and administration.

Containers have also been placed at the city’s entry points, and major roads and intersections are only allowing one lane of traffic. This has resulted in long queues of vehicles and significant inconvenience for residents.

Additional containers have been placed under the Zero Point Bridge too, leaving only two lanes open for traffic.

A heavy police presence is deployed at Faizabad, equipped with water cannons and tear gas. Operational police units have been issued 10,000 tear gas shells from police lines to manage the protesters.

Heads of three government hospitals have been instructed to keep their emergency departments on high alert until Monday to handle any potential emergencies arising from the situation.