Gohar said the PTI had consistently supported Pakistan’s diplomatic efforts, particularly to ease Iran-US tensions
RAWALPINDI/LAHORE:
PTI chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan on Tuesday expressed cautious optimism over the resumption of political dialogue, hoping that talks with the government could begin within the next one to one-and-a-half months, while stressing that meaningful progress depends on internal reconciliation and access to the party’s jailed founder.
Addressing the media at Dahgal Naka on Adiala Road, Gohar said that while Pakistan’s role in facilitating international peace efforts, especially between Iran and the US, was commendable, there was an urgent need for similar efforts in the country.
He said the authority to negotiate rested with Mahmood Khan Achakzai, adding that no formal talks or meetings were currently underway.
He called on the country’s leadership, including the Prime Minister, the Army Chief and the Chief Justice, to recognize that sustainable progress requires inclusiveness. “We are also citizens of this country,” he said, warning that stability at home was a prerequisite for any meaningful role abroad.
Gohar said the PTI had consistently supported Pakistan’s diplomatic efforts, particularly in easing Iran-US tensions, even canceling a planned public gathering in solidarity with national interests.
However, he slammed restrictions on meetings with the party’s founder, Imran Khan, calling it unacceptable that such a great leader was denied access to family and medical care.
Gohar maintained that while no diplomatic breakthrough had yet been achieved in the Islamabad talks, there had been no collapse either, and expressed hope that future rounds could lead to a lasting ceasefire.
He stressed that Pakistan’s growing diplomatic stature must be matched by internal cohesion, noting that “if you broker a ceasefire abroad, there must also be a ceasefire at home”.
Meanwhile, in a separate development, PTI founder Imran Khan’s lawyer Salman Safdar has claimed that the jailed leader was kept in prolonged solitary confinement and termed it as “torture”.
He raised serious concerns about his health, particularly his eye condition, which he said has shown no improvement.
Addressing a press conference at the LHCBA, Safdar said he met the PTI founder only once this year, for 65 minutes, during which the former premier repeatedly complained about being kept in solitary confinement for 22 hours a day.
He claimed that the conditions include no access to television, books, communications and even limited access to legal advice.
