Islamabad [Pakistan], December 9 : Pakistan's Information Minister Attaullah Tarar on Sunday slammed the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf's (PTI) call for civil disobedience, calling its proposer "disobedient since childhood," Dawn reported.
Referring to PTI founder Imran Khan, Tarar said, "The shameful call for civil disobedience has come from someone who once set fire to electricity bills." He said, "You have been disobedient since your childhood."
In his remarks at a Christmas event in his constituency, Tarar said that people needed solutions to inflation and not disruptive measures like civil disobedience, Dawn reported.
He said, "The people have rejected the politics of civil disobedience and violence. There will be no more chaos and mischievousness in the country." Tarar stated, "The people have resisted such tactics in the past and will do so again. Miscreants will fail to achieve their ulterior motives."
Attaullah Tarar said that the federal government was implementing the National Action Plan to remove terrorism. However, he said that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government was not serious about maintaining law and order in the province. The minister alleged that funds were being diverted to build a false narrative rather than addressing violence in areas like Kurram.
Meanwhile, in a move that indicates a shift in its strategy, the PTI has decided to hold talks with the establishment, postponing its civil disobedience movement until the outcome of the negotiations is clear.
The PTI has that the measures to sideline Imran Khan are futile. On Sunday, PTI Punjab president Hammad Azhar said that the "minus-Imran formula" had failed in the past and would fail again, Dawn reported.
In a post on X, Azhar called Imran Khan the "most significant political force" in Pakistan and added that the PTI founder's support base has increased even during his "illegitimate incarceration".
In another post shared on X, Azhar said the establishment's key functionaries did not seem on the same page. He said, "Someone is giving hope to Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, while another was seen pampering the PML-N leadership."
Hammad Azhar said, "None of these touts have the guts to become a councillor, and the parties they were pampering could not win a single seat if elections are held in a transparent manner."
Separately, PTI's negotiation committee member Sahibzada Hamid Raza said Imran Khan-founded party believed in negotiating with the "actual centres of power" instead of the government.
Speaking to Dawn, Raza, who is also the Sunni Ittehad Council Chairman, said, "The government does not hold the authority for meaningful talks. Negotiations will only take place with those who are the real source of power." He stressed that PTI has never ruled out talks with the establishment and remained open to talks.
Speaking about the decision to postpone the civil disobedience movement, Raza said, "We are not launching the campaign on Dec 14. The civil disobedience movement will only commence if negotiations fail." He further said, "If the government cannot meet our demands, we will engage directly with those who have the authority to address them."
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