Government committee for Azadi March talks: Opposition expresses reservations over inclusion of Sanjrani

The opposition has strong reservations at the presence of Chairman Senate Sadiq Sanjrani in the government committee assigned to hold a dialogue with the opposition while the government side is locked in internal differences over exclusion of some key government functionaries from the committee. Sources in Senate Secretariat told Business Recorder that chairman Senate approached Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Fazl (JUI-F) Secretary General Senator Abdul Ghafoor Haideri in his 'personal' capacity requesting Haideri to facilitate a meeting between the government's committee and JUI-F leadership. However, JUI-F Chief Fazal Ur Rehman refused to meet the committee members and instead referred the matter to the Rahbar Committee.

"Maulana Fazl Ur Rehman was instrumental in convincing the parliamentary opposition parties to bring a no-confidence motion against the chairman Senate, which was unsuccessful. How can Fazl Ur Rehman now agree to hold a meeting with the government side on the chairman Senate's request? If he agrees to do so, that would be embarrassing for the opposition in general and Fazal Ur Rehman in particular," a JUI-F leader told Business Recorder.

The chairman Senate's presence in the seven-member committee has given opposition the 'feeling that the government is not serious in pursuing dialogue with the opposition', given that those who can play an important role in facilitating dialogue with the opposition are not part of the committee, the source said.

"It appears to us that the government has formed the committee only to show that it has fulfilled its responsibility and tried to engage in dialogue with opposition. In reality, there seems to be no serious effort to reach out to the opposition. With Pervez Khattak as the committee head, there was hardly any need to task the chairman Senate to reach out to JUI-F leadership," Business Recorder was informed.

Important ministers that have not been included in the government's committee are Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Azam Swati and Religious Affairs Minister Noor-Ul-Haq Qadri. A Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmaker told Business Recorder that Swati's exclusion from the committee has raised eyebrows within the party given that Swati was formerly a senior leader of JUI-F and was regarded as a trusted aide of Fazl Ur Rehman.

He was a federal minister when the JUI-F was a part of Pakistan People's Party (PPP)-led federal government from 2008 to 2013. "No one in PTI knows better than Azam Swati how to engage the JUI-F leadership in dialogue. He is part of the PTI but still enjoys cordial terms with members of Fazl Ur Rehman's party. The government's decision not to include him in the committee has surprised everyone," the insider said.

Furthermore, it was learnt that Qadri, the Religious Affairs Minister, feels sidelined given that his ministerial portfolio made him the most relevant to hold dialogue with religious parties. Reports are also doing the rounds that Speaker National Assembly Asad Qaiser wanted to be appointed as the head of the committee. "In terms of protocol and prestige, the stature of speaker NA, who is the custodian of the lower house of the Parliament, is clearly above a federal minister. That the speaker NA was asked to work in the committee under Khattak's leadership was difficult for the speaker to accept," a source close to speaker NA told Business Recorder. However, the speaker finally agreed to work under Khattak's leadership on the insistence of Prime Minister Imran Khan, it was learnt.

Khattak and Qaiser were candidates for the position of chief minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after the PTI came into power in the province and at the centre last year. Reportedly, Khan had to accommodate both the leaders at the centre to resolve the matter by not nominating either of them as CM KP. Some circles in Punjab government told this correspondent on condition of anonymity that Speaker Punjab Assembly Chaudhry Pervez Elahi was also reluctant to work under Khattak's leadership but he gave in to the PM's decision.

A spokesman of Pervez Elahi, when contacted denied that the speaker Punjab Assembly had any reservations to work under defence minister's leadership. "Pervez Khattak has contacted Chaudhry Pervez Elahi and the latter has assured the former of his complete support in facilitating dialogue with opposition," the spokesman said. The speaker Punjab Assembly would attend the government committee meeting scheduled today (Tuesday), he told Business Recorder.

A group in PTI Punjab chapter maintains that the PM should have relied on Governor Punjab Chaudhry Sarwar to hold dialogue with the opposition, instead of Speaker Punjab Assembly. A PTI leader who enjoys close association with Pervez Khattak defended the defence minister's appointment as the head of the committee. "The JUI-F draws its major political support from KP where Pervez Khattak has strong political clout. In terms of protocol and prestige, the stature of chairman Senate and Speaker NA may be above a federal minister but he (Khattak) is much more senior and experienced than any other member in the committee. His political standing makes him highly eligible to head the committee," he said.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2019