After the talks

THE nation was made to wait for all of Saturday as opposition and government representatives convened for the second time in as many days at Parliament House in Islamabad. Sadly, the wait did not pay off.

Early on Sunday, opposition representatives said they had reached a deadlock and an understanding could not be reached with the government. Senate Opposition Leader Allama Raja Nasir Abbas said talks broke down over allowing former prime minister Imran Khan to meet his personal physicians, as well as the question of how terrorism in KP is to be addressed.

On Sunday afternoon, the interior minister accused KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi of ‘sabotaging’ the talks. It seems that there had been some understanding with the KP government that a signed agreement and implementation plan for counterterrorism operations would be finalised within 72 hours. But, this proposal was abandoned by Peshawar in the final phase over undisclosed reasons.

It appears — though time will make it clearer — that Mr Afridi had insisted that his province and its legislature have the final say on any security decisions affecting KP’s people. Otherwise, the list of demands shared by him on social media — as his proposals to the committee — seemed rather straightforward. It seemed he was open to further political engagement while relief for Mr Khan and other incarcerated PTI leaders was sought through legal means rather than any extraordinary or extrajudicial steps. The draft also signalled that the KP government was open to working with the centre on counterterrorism, calling for “effective, consistent and meaningful” consultations between the two. It is, therefore, not clear why a middle ground could not be reached or what became a sticking point. Both sides will spin it to blame the other.

The PTI has since kicked off its protest march, as it had promised it would. Former KP chief minister Ali Amin Gandapur had set out with a caravan from D.I. Khan for Lakki Marwat as these words were being written. He was to be joined by the incumbent chief minister. The party seems to be taking great care to advertise it as a “peaceful political march”, while repeatedly urging protesters to refrain from violence or vandalism. Mr Afridi had earlier reiterated the constitutional right to protest peacefully; it appears that the messaging is intended to keep violent reprisals by the government at bay. In any case, the march is still far away from the federal capital. The question of where it ends up, though, will cause stress to the federal government. Perhaps the talks should not be abandoned completely, considering how close they came to a solution. The negotiators should reconvene to give the process another chance. The window has not closed and, in keeping with democratic tradition, both sides must do their utmost to keep it open.

Published in Dawn, October 5th, 2026