ISLAMABAD:
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and the grand opposition alliance on Monday agreed to formulate a joint strategy on national issues and improve coordination between them.
The decision was taken at a high-level meeting attended by leaders of the opposition in the Senate and the National Assembly, as well as senior PTI figures, including Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi.
Afridi attended the meeting held in National Assembly Opposition Leader Mahmood Khan Achakzai on the instructions of jailed PTI founder Imran Khan.
Other attendees included Senate Leader of Opposition Allama Raja Nasir Abbas, former National Assembly Speaker and PTI Secretary General Asad Qaiser, Tehreek Tahafuz-e-Ayeen Pakistan (TTAP) Vice Chairman Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar, PTI Spokesperson Hussain Ahmed Yousafzai and Imran Khan’s Chaudh Khalid’s lawyer.
According to TTAP spokesperson Akhunzada Hussain Ahmed Yousafzai, the leaders discussed Imran Khan’s deteriorating health and limited medical treatment, obstacles to signing legal documents, denial of access to courts, the upcoming federal budget, the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award, provincial rights and fiscal policy, political situations and matters based on the overall political federalism.
Participants agreed to formulate a common strategy on national issues and further strengthen coordination between opposition parties and alliances.
The meeting comes amid repeated concerns raised by PTI and TTAP leaders over Imran Khan’s health, particularly reports of significant vision loss due to delayed medical treatment while he remains in Adiala jail.
Opposition figures, including CM Afridi, have alleged that Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi have been denied access to family, doctors and legal facilities despite court orders.
Imran Khan has assigned Mahmood Khan Achakzai and Allama Raja Nasir Abbas to guide all major political and parliamentary decisions, while he has directed Sohail Afridi to lead the street agitation front.
Afridi has spearheaded PTI’s street movement on Imran Khan’s directives.
The campaign recently entered a new phase with a well-attended rally in Muzaffarabad on 26 April to mark the party’s 30th foundation day, where he announced that “a very big protest call is coming soon” with large-scale participation expected from across the country.
Monday’s meeting appears to be aimed at aligning the intensified street agitation with the parliamentary strategy on Imran Khan’s health, constitutional rights and fiscal federalism.
The PTI and the grand opposition alliance have struggled to gain ground in recent months, largely due to internal divisions as well as ongoing regional hostilities that have pushed domestic political issues to the back burner.
But the opposition group now seems keen to capitalize on the recent hike in fuel prices that has antagonized the public.
The KP chief minister is also planning a visit to Lahore next month in a bid to revive the party’s fortunes in the country’s most politically significant province.
