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Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan has assigned Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur and his adviser Barrister Saif the responsibility of ‘negotiating with the establishment’, according to media reports.
The reports revealed that both Gandapur and Saif convinced the PTI founder to engage in talks with the establishment. Following their discussions, Khan granted them the task. The negotiations will remain confidential until there is significant progress.
However, a second meeting between Khan and Gandapur is expected soon to further these discussions.
Gandapur met Imran Khan at Adiala Jail after nearly six weeks and briefed Khan on matters related to the provincial government. After the meeting, both Gandapur and Saif left the jail without speaking to the media.
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Despite reports of talks, PTI Information Secretary Sheikh Waqas Akram dismissed claims that Imran Khan had tasked anyone with negotiations. He clarified that the meeting was strictly about provincial matters and party affairs.
“No one went to convince the PTI founder to negotiate,” Akram told local media, rejecting claims of any deal-making. He also stated that Gandapur would present Khan’s directives before PTI’s political committee.
This development follows PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar’s recent statement dismissing speculation of a ‘deal with the establishment.’
Gohar clarified that while PTI had reestablished contacts, final negotiations had not started. He described reports of an agreement as “baseless and disconnected from reality.”
This is not the first time that reports of PTI-Establishment negotiations have surfaced.
In January, similar speculations arose following a meeting between Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir and PTI leaders Gohar and Gandapur.
