Politics

PDM rejects Supreme Court-sanctioned talks with PTI over election date

Published

1 year ago

Farwa

“There will be no need for any negotiations [with PTI],” says PDM chief.
“Should I appear in front of the bench on which there is no confidence?”
“We accept justice, we will not accept your hammer,” Maulana Fazlur says.

Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Thursday rejected the possibility of holding negotiations with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan despite the directives issued by the Supreme Court a day earlier.

Speaking at a press conference, the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) leader said: “Inshallah there will be no need for any negotiations [with Imran Khan ].”

During the presser, Fazl took a hardline against both the possibility of any negotiations with PTI and the Supreme Court.

Accusing the apex court of being partial to the PTI chief, the PDM head said: “If the Supreme Court can show flexibility towards Imran Khan, then why can’t they show flexibility towards us?”

Earlier today, the top court directed the embattled ruling and the opposition political parties to immediately create a consensus on the date of elections and update the three-member bench by 4pm. However, the head of the ruling coalition party held the presser by 4:30pm.

It is pertinent to mention here that PTI Senior Vice President Fawad Chaudhry, ahead of appearing before the bench once again, had confirmed that the PDM had not yet contacted the Imran Khan-led party for talks.

In the hard-hitting conference, the PDM chief slammed the court of being partial in the matter.

He asked: “Is this a court or a panchayat?”

Maulana Fazl said: “The court wants us to agree on a date for the elections. According to the Constitution, it is mandatory to hold elections within 90 days, but if Imran Khan agrees on a date, then it is right.”

He added, “The court should clarify its position on the matter.”

The JUI-F chief declared that the apex court should abide by the rules set by parliament. “The authority under which the court is pressuring us is no longer its authority.

Parliament has no confidence in the bench, he added. “More than one resolution has been passed and the Attorney General has informed them that we have no confidence in the bench.”

“Should I appear in front of the bench on which there is no confidence?” he demanded.

Discussing the apex court’s role in the election fiasco in the country, the PDM chief called the SC’s behaviour as “oppressive”.

“We are not ready to accept this oppression of the court,” he said. “We call this entire process a non-political process.”

He demanded to know how long people would have to continue being misled and blackmailed by these things.

He further said: “There was a time when it was said to talk under the shadow of a gun. Today, we are being forced to negotiate in front of the hammer.”

“We accept justice, we will not accept your hammer,” he said.

“Bilawal Bhutto visited me yesterday to offer his condolences on the death of Mufti Abdul Shakoor,” the JI leader said.

He further added that he had met Bilawal in person and had spoken to PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari on the phone, adding that he had also held telephonic conversations with PML-N leadership and ministers.

The PDM chief said that if the apex court tried to impose decisions by force, they would turn to the “people’s court.”

If they are willing to be such biased parties, he said, they should come into politics. “Then we will know how much water they are in.”

Maulana Fazl then lambasted the PTI chief and said, “Imran Khan is facing four/five cases in various courts and he may be disqualified soon.”

“He should tell us about his performance during his three-and-a-half years in power.”

Lamenting on the state of the country and the debilitating economic crisis, he said the nation is stuck in a swamp.

“The State Bank has gone to IMF, which has the power to fluctuate prices,“ he said.

Claiming that strong legislation alone could provide people relief, the PDM chief said: “It is no longer in your power to increase or decrease the value of the rupee.”

Latest News

CM Maryam Nawaz responds to the death of a PML-N employee in Narowal

Published

21 hours ago

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The chief minister of Punjab promised in a statement that hooliganism would not be tolerated and that people who use politics to incite violence and make personal assaults are the country’s adversaries.

In contrast to bigotry and violence, CM Maryam Nawaz said that politics was supposed to serve the people and bring about reforms.

It is important to note that earlier today, during the by-election, a PML-N worker was struck in the head during a fight with the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). The worker subsequently died.

Raids were underway to apprehend the other suspects in the man’s death in Narowal, according to police, who also reported that at least three people had been apprehended.

Read more: Voting in the 2024 by-election starts in the midst of intermittent violence

Twenty-one National and Provincial Assembly seats are up for grabs, with 239 candidates in total. There will be by-elections in the National Assembly’s constituencies in two constituencies each for Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Sindh.

Twelve seats were allocated to the Punjab Assembly, and two seats each were allocated to the assembly of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.

Latest News

After taking an oath to lead JI, Hafiz Naeem declares an anti-government movement.

Published

4 days ago

Farwa

The JI’s headquarters, Mansoora, hosted an oath-taking ceremony that was attended by workers, party leaders, and former chief of the party Sirajul Haq, Liaqat Baloch, and others from around the nation.

Speaking at the event, Hafiz Naeem—who was elected as the JI’s sixth Ameer—reaffirmed the party’s commitment to advancing its principles and goals and stated that he believed the JI would lead the nation as a whole.

He added that his party would start a broad campaign against the “fake democratic” process and Form 47, which the government “imposed.” He went on, “Workers should get ready for the movement.”

Hafiz Naeem further urged the JI to collaborate with like-minded groups who feel that the public mandate was “stolen” on February 8.

Hafiz Naeem succeeded Maulana Abul Ala Maududi (1941–72), Sirajul Haq (2013–2024), Qazi Hussain Ahmed (1987–2008), Munawer Hassan (2008–2013), and Mian Tufail Muhammad (1972–87) as the sixth individual to occupy the top spot in the party.

Sirajul Haq was replaced as Ameer of Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan by Hafiz Naeem, who was elected earlier on April 4.

Voting was done by some 45,000 party members nationwide, according to the election commission that the JIP’s Majlis-e-Shura created.

Approximately 6,000 female party members participated in the election process, according to the election commission. There was a registered turnout of 82 percent overall.

Latest News

Hamid Raza says Nawaz Sharif used the Faizabad sit-in to criticize institutions.

Published

4 days ago

Farwa

The individual asserted that they had proof of the PML-N’s betrayal during the 2017 Faizabad sit-in, citing knowledge of the protest from both General Faiz Hameed (Retd) and former Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa (Retd).

The PML-N workers in Rawalpindi were instructed to make sure that people participated in the sit-in, while the then-Punjab administration assisted in organizing it, according to Hamid Raza.

The head of the SIC said that while the goals of the Faizabad sit-in were correct, the event was deliberately planned to include individuals who carried signs criticizing government agencies.

During the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) sit-in, he said, workers for the PML-N were also among those who received money.

Remember that the investigation commission cleared former spy chief Faiz Hameed of all charges when it was established to look into the 2017 sit-in at the Faizabad Interchange in Islamabad.

To protest the changes made to the Election Act of 2017, which changed the word “oath” to “declaration,” the TLP staged a sit-in at the Faizabad junction on November 8, 2017.

In a submission to the Supreme Court, former PEMRA chairman Absar Alam said that pressure was applied to the media regulating body during the Faizabad sit-in by former ISI commander Faiz Hameed.

After the Fact-Finding Committee report was rejected by the Supreme Court, the federal government formed an inquiry commission led by retired Inspector General Akhtar Ali Shah.

The probe panel, however, handed the former intelligence head the clean pass in its 149-page report, which was released Thursday.

Faiz Hameed was granted authorization for the arrangement, according to the commission, by the then-DG ISI and Army Chief. Additionally included in the article was the inclusion of Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal and then-Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi in the arrangement.