Govt appears to backtrack on PTI talks Govt appears to backtrack on PTI talks

 Govt appears to backtrack on PTI talks Govt appears to backtrack on PTI talks Govt appears to backtrack on PTI talks

 The ruling PML-N categorically denied holding talks with the PTI on the issue of elections or anything else on Sunday, dashed the hopes of the Jamaat-e-Islami, which attempted a day earlier to initiate talks between the government and the opposition to break the current political impasse.

Marriyum Aurangzeb, Federal Information and Broadcasting Minister, told The Express Tribune that there would be no talks with the PTI, a day after PDM chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman announced that neither his party, the JUI-F, nor any other constituent of the alliance would hold talks with it.

The Maulana had called PTI Chairman and former Prime Minister Imran Khan a "unnecessary element" in Pakistani politics.

Marriyum Aurangzeb

 Federal Information and Broadcasting Minister, told The Express Tribune that there would be no talks with the PTI, a day after PDM chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman announced that neither his party, the JUI-F, nor any other constituent of the alliance would hold talks with it.

The Maulana had appointed himself as Chairman of the PTI.

"There will be no talks," the information minister said in response to several questions about holding a dialogue with the PTI on elections and the efforts being made by various political parties, including the PPP, which is not a member of the PDM, to bring the two sides to the negotiating table.

The minister was questioned about the PML-stance N's on the talks after the PPP decided to keep the talks open.

However, at a news conference on Saturday evening, the PDM chief slammed the door on the PTI, saying that different stakeholders were pushing for negotiations with the party, but that would not happen.

The PML-stance, N's which is a major component of the PDM, comes on the heels of JI chief Sirajul Haq's separate meetings with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Imran, which were seen as a significant thaw in political tensions.

Observers saw Siraj's meetings with Shehbaz and Imran as a major breakthrough, but PTI insiders dismissed it as nothing more than a "media consumption" move.

Soon after the JI chief's meetings with the bigwigs, senior PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry stated that talks between his party and those in power - regardless of who sat among them, and at a time when PTI leaders were being arrested on a daily basis - seemed pretty pointless, as the intent of the talks seemed pretty clear.

Fawad reiterated his stance on Sunday as he reportedly said the government should create an atmosphere for talks because the arrest of party leaders and negotiations could not take place at the same time.

On the one hand, he claimed, Siraj visited Imran's Zaman Park residence in Lahore to discuss the possibility of starting talks, while on the other, PTI Sindh Chapter President Ali Zaidi was arrested.

Nonetheless, the PTI formed a three-member committee on Sunday to negotiate with the ruling coalition on holding elections in Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, as well as deciding the date for general elections in the country.

Pervez Khattak, Ejaz Chaudhry, and Mian Mehmoodur Rasheed make up the PTI's three-member committee.

Similarly, the PPP formed a three-member body comprised of Senator Yousuf Raza Gillani, Federal Commerce Minister Naveed Qamar, and Prime Minister's Adviser on Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit-Baltistan Qamar Zaman Kaira to persuade allies and the PTI to sit down for talks in order to settle the dust for the time being.

With the PPP and PTI forming committees and the PML-N and PDM leaders ruling out talks, the political impasse appears to be far from over.

Although PM Shehbaz has previously extended an olive branch to the PTI, this time it is moving in the opposite direction.

On the eve of the country's diamond jubilee, the premier renewed his offer to sit down with his bitter rival Imran to reach a consensus on a "charter of economy" in the greater national interest amid the worsening economic crisis.

The offer came a day after President Dr Arif Alvi offered his office to mediate a meeting between Prime Minister Shehbaz and former Prime Minister Imran.

However, as had happened on several other occasions, verbal offers could never go beyond words.

Several PML-N and PPP leaders were contacted for their thoughts on the proposal and the refusal to hold talks, but they did not respond.

The premier had offered talks to his cabinet on the eve of the country's diamond jubilee.