Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman said on Monday that the opposition could consider moving a no-confidence motion against the government if the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) withdrew its support. Speaking at a news conference after a meeting of the JUI-F General Council, Fazl said the opposition currently did not have the numbers to table a no-confidence motion in the National Assembly. "If the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) is not part of the government, then a minority government is ruling," he said.
Fazl said the JUI-F council had endorsed a policy of cooperation and coordination among the opposition parties in parliament. He said the opposition would consider all constitutional and parliamentary options if the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) joined its ranks. Fazl said political dialogue should be a two-way process and urged the government to hold talks with the parties staging protests.
He said the JUI-F viewed the government as a representative of the establishment. "If the government contacts the united opposition, we will talk to them," he said, adding that his party would continue to raise issues through its own political platform. Fazl said the opposition had placed the release of political prisoners, the Kashmir issue and the question of creating or dividing provinces on its agenda.
He also criticised the government's handling of protests, saying Islamabad had been filled with shipping containers after some political parties announced demonstrations. "With such attitudes, you are creating rebels for the country," he said. Fazl said the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) had the right to protest and that his party had previously held demonstrations without causing damage to public property.