The government cannot be pressured into accepting demands by holding the state hostage and creating political instability, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah said on Wednesday. Speaking to the media in Islamabad, Sanaullah said that the government would not allow talks with the opposition to be used as a “tool” for political demands. “Doors for talks are open,” Sanaullah said, recalling Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s remarks yesterday calling on the PTI leadership to sit down for talks and abandon their protest plans. However, Sanaullah said, negotiations could not be used to strong-arm the government. He described PTI as having been “successful” in obstructing peace. Politics had been transformed into a culture of “below the belt” jabs at each other and a “culture of intolerance”, he lamented. The PM’s adviser recalled PTI’s past protests in Islamabad, including in 2022 and 2024. Sanaullah highlighted the recent rise in terrorism incidents, stressing that martyrs included children, civilians and soldiers from KP. “On one hand, the martyrs’ bodies were lying there, and on the other hand, the entire provincial government was playing the dhol and chanting slogans, urging people to join the march on Islamabad.” The attitude of the KP government was “unacceptable”, the PML-N leader declared, adding that the people in the province had also condemned it. More to follow
Govt cannot be pressured into accepting demands by holding the state 'hostage', says Sanaullah on PTI march
The government cannot be pressured into accepting demands by holding the state hostage and creating political instability, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah said on Wednesday. Speaking to the media in Islamabad, Sanaullah said that the government would not allow talks with the opposition to be used as a “tool” for political demands. “Doors for talks are open,” Sanaullah said, recalling Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s remarks yesterday calling on the PTI leadership to sit down for talks and abandon their protest plans. However, Sanaullah said, negotiations could not be used to strong-arm the government. He described PTI as having been “successful” in obstructing peace. Politics had been transformed into a culture of “below the belt” jabs at each other and a “culture of intolerance”, he lamented. The PM’s adviser recalled PTI’s past protests in Islamabad, including in 2022 and 2024. Sanaullah highlighted the recent rise in terrorism incidents, stressing that martyrs included children, civilians and soldiers from KP. “On one hand, the martyrs’ bodies were lying there, and on the other hand, the entire provincial government was playing the dhol and chanting slogans, urging people to join the march on Islamabad.” The attitude of the KP government was “unacceptable”, the PML-N leader declared, adding that the people in the province had also condemned it. More to follow