Pakistan braces for PTI march as talks on Imran Khan access fail

Talks between the government and PTI collapsed over access to jailed former premier Imran Khan before a planned protest. With no deal on his meeting or medical treatment, the party has pressed ahead with its march to Islamabad.

In Short

• Two rounds of government-PTI talks ended without agreement early Sunday
• PTI demanded access to Khan, his doctors, and detained supporters' release
• Government linked any meeting with Khan to cancelling the planned protest

Pakistan on Sunday prepared for a protest by supporters of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan and his party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, after talks with the government failed and the party decided to go ahead with its long march to Islamabad.

The negotiations centred on PTI's demands, including an immediate meeting with Khan and his transfer to a hospital where his personal doctors could examine and treat him. The government, in turn, wanted the party to call off its October 4 protest, but the two sides remained deadlocked after two rounds of talks.

The first round of talks was held on Friday, when both sides exchanged their positions and agreed to continue discussions without reaching an agreement. The second round began shortly before 5 pm on Saturday and went on for several hours before ending in a stalemate early Sunday. According to sources, the deadlock persisted over access to Khan, with the government insisting that PTI first announce the cancellation of the protest and that the issue of a meeting with its jailed leader would be decided later. PTI, however, wanted a meeting with Khan before taking a call on the protest.

Khan, 73, has been in jail since 2023 and faces more than 100 cases, including corruption and charges linked to inciting violence. He is lodged at Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi. PTI has also demanded the release of Khan's sisters and supporters arrested ahead of the protest, a proper medical check-up for Khan's wife Bushra Bibi, and that their cases be heard without interference.

On August 18, Pakistan's Supreme Court ordered that Khan be shifted to a private hospital in Islamabad for medical examination and treatment after concerns were raised about his health, especially his eyesight. The government challenged the order and later filed a review petition. Preparations were then made to move Khan to Shifa International Hospital, but when he was taken out of Adiala jail on the night of August 20-21, he was instead taken to the government-run Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences. The government said the change was made on security grounds.

Khan was examined at PIMS and the government said he was medically fit before he was sent back to jail early on August 21. His sister was present during the examination, but his personal physician, who had been waiting at Shifa, was not allowed to take part. Khan's family and party colleagues objected, saying the government had failed to implement the Supreme Court's order, and later sought contempt proceedings against senior officials. On September 16, the Supreme Court deferred the proceedings for three weeks after the Federal Constitutional Court summoned records of cases linked to Khan's transfer to Shifa International Hospital, leading to a dispute over the two courts' jurisdiction. That dispute has remained central to the demand by Khan's supporters that he be treated at a private hospital by his own doctor.

Pakistan's Minister of State for Interior Tallal Chaudhry, who was part of the federal government delegation in the talks, said on Sunday that the discussions failed mainly because the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government could not assure the Centre that it would cooperate in the fight against terrorism in the province. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is governed by PTI and the party's long march is set to begin from there. The province has long faced militant violence, particularly from the Pakistani Taliban, with militants operating across the Afghanistan-Pakistan border and carrying out attacks. Tehreek-e-Tahafuz-e-Ayin-e-Pakistan leader and Senate Opposition Leader Allama Nasir Abbas said the talks remained unresolved over both terrorism in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and access to Khan, including to his personal physician. Pakistan Peoples Party leader Sherry Rehman, who also took part in the talks, said the government delegation had discussed all the opposition's points but claimed that the draft agreement was changed four times after it had been agreed upon. She told Geo News that she would not go into details.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi announced at 12:46 am that the protest would go ahead. In a message on X, he said party supporters from Tank, Dera Ismail Khan, South Waziristan, North Waziristan, Bannu and Lakki Marwat would join the long march from Gandi Chowk in Lakki Marwat at 1 pm on Sunday. He said the caravan would halt for the night near Karak, leave from there at 12:30 pm the next day and stay overnight near Kohat. At 12 pm on October 6, protesters from Kohat, Hangu, Kurram and Orakzai will join the convoy, which will move towards Peshawar and spend the night near Mattani. Afridi said the caravan would leave Budh Bair in Peshawar on the afternoon of October 7, with the remaining constituencies of Peshawar joining at Kohat Road Bridge and the Motorway Toll Plaza before the convoy halts near Charsadda Interchange. He said the protesters would leave Charsadda Interchange at 12:30 pm on October 8 after people from Charsadda and Mohmand joined them, and that people from across KP would gather at Khairabad that day, though he did not announce the final leg of the journey to Islamabad.

Meanwhile, Rana Sanaullah, political adviser to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, said protesters would not be allowed to enter Islamabad. The federal government had already deployed additional security personnel and placed shipping containers on roads leading to the capital. With the talks having failed, PTI is set to proceed with the march while the dispute over Khan's access and medical treatment remains unresolved.

With PTI Inputs

- Ends