Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Sunday accused Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister Sohail Afridi of attempting to sabotage negotiations between the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and the federal government. The Imran Khan-founded party and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N)-led federal government held two rounds of negotiations on Friday and Saturday to prevent the party's long march towards Islamabad. However, the talks ended without an agreement after the two sides disagreed on key issues, including access to jailed PTI founder Imran Khan and military operations in KP's restive areas.
Addressing a press conference in Lahore, the interior minister said that 99% of the points in the agreement had been agreed upon during the negotiations. "The agreement had been prepared," Naqvi said, adding that he took a copy of the agreement to President Asif Ali Zardari. The interior minister said that after showing the agreement to the president and returning, he learnt that several changes had been made to the draft by the KP chief minister. "Unfortunately, the KP chief minister tried to sabotage the negotiations," Naqvi added. Naqvi stated that four drafts were prepared and amended during yesterday's negotiations, with participants examining the details of the proposed agreement.
The interior minister warned that strict legal action would be taken against those violating the law during the ongoing protest movement, warning that authorities would not allow any march on Islamabad. He said that all those gathering for the sit-in would face a complete legal process and trial if they violated the law. He reiterated that the government had made it clear that no one would be permitted to storm the federal capital. "The long march has already begun, and we will not spare anyone who violates the law," he said, adding that he stood by his previous statements on the matter.
Naqvi said he was keeping both the president and the prime minister fully informed about the evolving situation. He stated that both leaders had instructed authorities to make dialogue efforts successful while ensuring that they remained updated on every development. "The president and the prime minister are the ultimate decision-makers, and they will decide the future course of action," he said. He added that the government had made it clear to the opposition delegation that the issue was not political but concerned terrorism.
The interior minister said he had requested that the KP government be made a mandatory participant in the negotiations, adding that if CM Afridi had to make the decisions, he should have attended the talks himself. Naqvi said the government had not asked for the postponement of the long march, although the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) had made such a request. He said all participants in the negotiations had shown interest in the details of the discussions. "The responsibility for the failure of the negotiations lies solely with the KP chief minister," he warned, adding that CM Afridi would be held responsible if any lives were lost.
Naqvi's remarks come hours after he stated that the PTI-led government in KP backed out of its security commitments during the last phase of negotiations with the federal government. In a post on X, the interior minister said that the provincial government had agreed to provide a written agreement and an implementation plan for security and counter-terrorism operations within 72 hours, alongside reviewing the Police Act.