ISLAMABAD: Minister for Railways Khawaja Saad Rafique has expressed his support for holding talks with the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) party for the sake of the country, while accusing its chairman Imran Khan of promoting “politics of hatred, slander, and conspiracies.”
In a tweet on Wednesday, Rafique declared that the environment has been vitiated by Khan’s “divisive rhetoric,” making it challenging to communicate in an environment of mistrust.
However, Rafique believes that despite the conflicts and mistrust, the way out lies in talking to each other for the betterment of Pakistan.
According to media reports, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif called a meeting of coalition party heads to discuss the issue of holding talks with the PTI. While the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) supported the idea of holding talks, the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) and Jamhoori Watan Party (JWP) opposed it. There are also some hawkish elements within the ruling PML-N who oppose talks with the opposition.
Recently, Jamaat-i-Islami leader Siraj ul-Haq held separate meetings with Sharif and Khan, insisting that both sides hold talks. His efforts yielded positive results as both sides gave a “positive response.” The PML-N tasked Ayaz Sadiq and Rafique to hold talks while the PTI formed a three-member panel comprising Pervez Khattak, Mian Mehmood ur-Rashid, and Ejaz Chaudhry for the task.
