ISLAMABAD: The government and the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) of former Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday began long-awaited negotiations to resolve issues fueling political polarization and straining the country’s fragile economy, National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq confirmed.

The government announced the formation of a committee a day earlier to hold talks with PTI. This followed ex-premier Khan’s threat to launch civil disobedience by urging overseas Pakistanis, his party’s key support base, to halt remittances if his demands, including the release of political prisoners, were not met by Dec. 22.

Khan, who has been imprisoned for over a year on charges he claims are politically motivated, has also called for judicial commissions to investigate violent protests on May 9 last year and Nov. 26 this year, which the government says involved his party supporters.

Known for taking hard-line political positions, Khan formed a seven-member committee to negotiate with the government. This was done amid growing concerns he may face trial by the military for allegedly inciting attacks on sensitive security installations during violent protests following his brief detention last year in a graft case.

“We will talk about Pakistan’s interests instead of our own,” the National Assembly speaker said while addressing the initial round of talks. “We will try to sit and discuss matters for the sake of Pakistan.”

“The solution to every problem is through talks,” he added. “We implied a democratic way and talks are being held in the parliament only.”

The government’s committee includes key figures from the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), such as Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, Political Adviser Rana Sanaullah and Senator Irfan Siddiqui, alongside representatives from allied parties.

The PTI team has Khan’s loyal lieutenant Asad Qaiser, Sunni Ittehad Council Chairman Sahibzada Hamid Raza and Majlis Wehdat-i-Muslimeen’s Senator Raja Nasir Abbas.

Sadiq said the seriousness of purpose on both sides was reflected by the seniority of the people representing them.

He informed that a second meeting would follow the deliberations in the initial one.

The negotiations come days after Pakistan’s military announced prison sentences for 25 people involved in the May 9, 2023, protests, which PTI has demanded be investigated. The military said it had gathered “irrefutable evidence” against those prosecuted and reiterated its commitment to bringing the planners of the violence to justice.

The country has remained gripped by political unrest and uncertainty since Khan’s ouster from power through a parliamentary no-confidence vote, which has also exacerbated Pakistan’s economic hardships.

Senior government representatives have recently acknowledged that negotiations could offer a pathway out of the current political impasse. However, they have cautioned that it is too early to determine which of PTI’s demands might be addressed.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Asif on Sunday blamed the judiciary for delaying verdicts in the May 9, 2023, cases, which have so far led to the conviction of 25 supporters of former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party for attacking government buildings and military properties last year.

On Dec. 21, the Pakistan Army sentenced 25 people for participating in the violent protests that erupted in several Pakistani cities following Khan’s brief detention on corruption charges, resulting in damage to major military facilities and martyrs’ monuments in the country.

However, several suspects are also facing legal charges in anti-terrorism courts, with the military hoping for early verdicts in their cases, according to a statement announcing the sentencing of the 25 individuals, which described the rioting as “politically provoked violence.”

The PTI has denied any involvement in the violence, describing the May 9 incident as a “false flag” operation aimed at crushing the party.

“The judiciary created the biggest hurdle in this [the conviction of May 9 suspects] while this thing was allowed to linger for one and a half years,” Asif said while speaking to the media in London, the city he is currently visiting.

Describing the May 9 protests as a national problem, he said all the cases related to it required verdicts at the earliest.

The conviction of the 25 individuals followed a ruling by a seven-member Constitutional Bench of the Supreme Court of Pakistan on Dec. 13, allowing military courts to share their verdicts. Prior to that, the court had unanimously declared last year that prosecuting civilians in military courts violated the Constitution.

Khan’s PTI party rejected the military’s announcement, with opposition leader Omar Ayub Khan saying they were “against the principles of justice.”

The sentencing of the 25 individuals also raises concerns about Khan, who faces charges of inciting attacks against the armed forces and may potentially be tried in a military court.

Earlier, Asif had regretted the delay in announcing the verdicts, saying that it “raised the morale of the accused and their facilitators.”

“Right now, only the workers, who were used [to generate violence], have been punished under the law,” he had said. “This will not end until the ones, who planned this terrible day, are not brought before the law.”