Slamming the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf for calling off the negotiations, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said that the government was mulling a “middle ground” and the formation of a committee instead of a judicial commission in light of the former ruling party’s demand.
“It is not necessary to constitute a commission…we were deliberating on a middle ground to take things forward,” the minister said while speaking to a news channel.
Tarar said that the PTI’s decision to quit talks was based on “malicious intent and made in haste”.
“Our response to PTI’s demands was to come,” he said, adding that “extensive discussions” were held regarding the charter of demands.
Castigating the former ruling party, the minister said that they should have found “a legitimate excuse” to prove they had been victimised. “PTI was bound to wait for the government’s reply till the deadline, now the onus is on the party,” he added.
Earlier, PML-N Senator Irfan Siddiqui — spokesperson for the government’s negotiation committee — termed the PTI’s decision “unfortunate”, urging the former ruling party to “reconsider it as the deadline of seven working days ends on January 28”.
