TTAP holds an important meeting in the opposition lobby of the National Assembly of Pakistan under the chairmanship of Mahmood Khan Achakzai. PHOTO: X
ISLAMABAD:
The Tehreek-e-Tahaffuz Ayeen-e-Pakistan (TTAP) on Thursday suspended all negotiations with the government until Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan is allowed to meet his family and his doctors are granted access to him, saying no talks would take place until information about his health was provided.
The announcement came a day after parliament endorsed an emergency proclamation for Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, deepening the political standoff between the government and opposition despite recent efforts to resolve their differences through dialogue.
“Until a meeting with Imran is arranged and information about his health is provided, there will be no talks with the government,” the alliance said in a statement posted on X after a meeting chaired by its chairman, Mahmood Khan Achakzai. It said Achakzai would have exclusive authority to negotiate with the government.
The alliance also demanded the release of Imran’s sisters, access to him for his doctors, and the immediate release of K-P Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, provincial assembly speaker Babar Saleem Swati, PTI provincial president Junaid Akbar and all arrested members of the national and provincial assemblies, as well as party leaders.
TTAP condemned the imposition of governor’s rule and an emergency in K-P, describing the measures as “an attack on the Constitution and the public mandate”. It demanded their immediate withdrawal and said its constituent parties would challenge the decisions in the Peshawar High Court.
The National Assembly and Senate on Wednesday approved the emergency proclamation for K-P by majority vote, following the federal government’s decision to impose the measure alongside governor’s rule on October 11. The government has defended the move on security grounds, citing deteriorating law and order in the province and the need for greater coordination in counterterrorism efforts.
The alliance also called for the release of human rights lawyer Imaan Mazari, her husband Hadi Chatha, Dr Mahrang Baloch and all political prisoners associated with the Baloch Yakjehti Committee.
It reiterated its opposition to all forms of terrorism, including violence against civilians by the state, attacks by state institutions on political parties and sectarian violence. TTAP expressed support for the National Action Plan but called for the immediate implementation of a joint resolution adopted by a peace jirga in the K-P Assembly instead of introducing new policies.
On Balochistan, the alliance blamed the worsening security situation on what it described as an unrepresentative provincial government and failed federal policies. It called for the province’s problems to be resolved through dialogue with its people rather than the use of force.
The statement also expressed concern over the situation in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, alleging that an “artificial system” had been imposed on its people. It condemned what it said was the denial of internet access and basic necessities for five months.
TTAP said restrictions on judicial independence and the media had prompted it to approach international human rights organisations and the United Nations to highlight what it described as human rights violations and breaches of the Constitution in Pakistan.
