PML-N rules out talks on 'unreasonable demands'

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) parliamentary leader in the Senate Irfan Siddiqui on Sunday sought to pour cold water on any possibility of dialogue with the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), saying that their four points behind the November 24 protests were just a bubble that had burst.

Speaking with a private news channel, Senator Siddiqui categorically stated that the government was not conducting any negotiations with the opposition party nor it was in any mood to give them any concessions.

PTI founder Imran Khan had called protest in Islamabad on November 24. On Tuesday, he allowed Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur and party Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan to open dialogue with the establishment.

Last week, the PTI put forth four demands as part of negotiations to bring an end to the protests: repeal of the 26th Constitutional Amendment; restoration of the Constitution to its original form; return of the 'stolen mandate'; and, release of political prisoners held "without trial".

The federal and the Punjab governments, on the other hand, had decided to take strict measures to deal with the protesters. The authorities had already imposed Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), banning any gatherings in the federal capital.

"All the four of these demands are non-starters. The four demands of the PTI are just a bubble," Siddiqui said. "By announcing the protest on November 24, the PTI has come to a dead-end and they are looking for an excuse to get out of it and avoid embarrassment," he added.

"Talks can be held if the demands are reasonable but to repeal the 26th Amendment, returning the mandate, ending cases and releasing all the prisoners! You cannot negotiate when the demands are utterly unreasonable," he added.

The senior PML-N leader said that the government was not conducting any kind of negotiations on these demands, adding that the PTI could not be given any sort of concession in this regard. He said that they could not be called to serious negotiations.

The senator slammed the former ruling party for instituting false cases against the then opposition by Imran Khan-led government. On the contrary, he added, the cases against the PTI founder and all his associates were solid.

Responding to a question whether PML-N President and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif wanted to see Imran in jail, Siddiqui said Nawaz was not that type of politician. He pointed out that Nawaz spoke about forgetting the past soon after his return from London.

He claimed that Imran was in jail and facing cases for his serious crimes. "Did Nawaz Sharif tell him to sell Toshakhana watches and jewellery in the markets in Dubai? Did Nawaz Sharif tell him to attack 250 military installations," he said.

The senator advised that it would be good for the PTI it if withdrew the November 24 protest call, otherwise the government would fulfil its duty to protect the life and property of the people under the Constitution and the law.

Meanwhile, according to sources, the interior ministry had decided to take the strictest measures to deal with the PTI's protest call. The Islamabad administration had imposed Section 144 CrPC for two months in view of the protests.

The Punjab government had also started its preparations for the protest, putting the police on alert. Officials said that government had put 10,000 additional forces on stand-by position with the necessary equipment to deal with riots to assist the Islamabad police.