PDM signals willingness to hold ‘unconditional talks’ with Imran Khan, sources
The Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) has expressed its willingness to hold ‘unconditional talks’ with former Prime Minister Imran Khan to end the current political turmoil in the current, sources said.
“If Khan himself is ready to hold talks, then the ruling coalition is also ready for ‘unconditional’ talks with the PTI,” sources said.
A government official claimed that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had asked the PML-N and PDM leaders to go easy on the former prime minister and not tease him on the issue of talks with the government as such a move would be counterproductive.
Imran Khan had recently expressed his willingness to hold talks with the coalition government but withdrew his offer after being criticized by PDM leaders for taking another U-turn.
In order to end the differences, the PDM has also decided to slow down efforts to move a no-confidence motion against Punjab Chief Minister Pervez Elahi in the provincial Assembly as they believe that both Imran Khan and Pervez Elahi would not dissolve the provincial assembly.
The development came after the meeting of PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari and PML-Q leader Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain in Islamabad, which took stock of the political situation in Punjab.
It was the second meeting of the two leaders in 12 days.
Sources close to the former president said that the PDM leadership, especially Asif Zardari, believes that Imran Khan will never dissolve the assemblies as such a move would make him ‘irrelevant’ in the political landscape.
According to media reports, Zardari and Shujaat also spoke to PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif in London and asked him to drop the plan of no-confidence motion against Punjab CM.
