PTI to court opposition parties for long march

Weighs reaching out to PPP; delegation to meet leaders after Aug 14

ISLAMABAD:

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has decided to reach out to opposition parties ahead of its planned long march on Islamabad on September 27, while the party's senior leadership is also considering contacting the ruling coalition's Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) as it seeks broader political support for its campaign.

According to sources, a PTI delegation will begin meeting opposition parties after August 14.

The seven-member delegation is expected to include Salman Akram Raja, Junaid Akbar, Aamir Dogar and Atif Khan, among others, and will hold consultations with opposition leaders.

The outreach will also extend to the political leadership in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) as PTI plans to meet Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman.

Sources said the party would also approach Tehreek Tahaffuz Aain-e-Pakistan (TTAP) chief Mahmood Khan Achakzai and Fazl as part of its efforts to build political support for the planned mobilisation.

The possibility of contacting the PPP is also under consideration at the senior leadership level, despite the party being part of the ruling coalition.

The development comes two days after PTI announced its September 27 march towards Islamabad at a public gathering in Peshawar.

K-P Chief Minister Sohail Afridi had said the party would head towards the federal capital if meetings with PTI founder Imran Khan were not resumed, he was not allowed to receive treatment from his personal physician and cases against him were not heard by the courts.

He had said PTI had lost hope in the courts, arguing that the judiciary had become paralysed following the 26th and 27th constitutional amendments.

Afridi further said the party had exhausted every constitutional and legal avenue to secure meetings with the PTI founder, but its demands had not been heard.