Sunni Ittehad Council chief deems PTI talks with Fazl to be ‘mistake’
Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) Chairman Sahibzada Hamid Raza has expressed discontent with the PTI and its talks with Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, calling them a mistake on the former’s part.
The JUI-F and the PTI had reached a consensus in the aftermath of February’s elections and announced that the elections were rigged. The parties have since touched base on protesting against the government but the JUI-F was not included in a six-party opposition alliance against the incumbent government.
The Tehreek Tahafuz Ayeen-i-Pakistan umbrella includes the PTI, Balochistan National Party-Mengal, Jamaat-i-Islami, Pashtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party, Majlis Wahdat Muslimeen and SIC.
Following a rally in Pishin of the coalition in which slogans were raised against Fazl, the PTI had made an attempt last week to pacify the JUI-F chief’s anger. Senior PTI leader Asad Qaiser had a telephone conversation with the Maulana, expressing regrets over the episode.
In an interview on DawnNewsTV show ‘Doosra Rukh’ on Friday, Raza was questioned about the talks between the two and his thoughts on them to which he said: “In my view, it was a mistake but Asad Qaiser is considerably senior to me in parliamentary experience so maybe his decision was right.”
He said there was no change in the SIC’s relations with Fazl. “It is mine and my party’s stance that Maulana Fazl should not be a part of this alliance,” he said, alleging that the JUI-F would reap the benefits of the alliance by securing Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s governorship and leave the coalition hanging.
Raza added, however, that if the coalition decided otherwise with the consensus of the majority then he would accept it.
The SIC chief said he had nothing to apologise to the JUI-F for and instead called on the party to apologise for being part of the Pakistan Democratic Movement and ousting the PTI government through the no-confidence vote.
Earlier, he lamented how despite overtures by the PPP and PML-N urging political actors to move forward, PTI members were still in jail.
“On the one hand, they say we should move forward, but on the other hand, our sitting parliamentarians from Faisalabad are in custody at the police station,” he said.
“If you are serious about moving forward, then let’s come to the negotiating table,” he added.
When asked if the PTI-SIC alliance was willing to negotiate with a committee, including representatives from the PPP and the PML-N, he said, “Yes we are open to talking, but only if our demands are on the agenda and the government is ready to discuss them.”