PESHAWAR: The federal government has agreed, in principle, to lift a recently-imposed ban on the Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement (PTM), with some caveats, multiple sources privy to the development told Dawn.

The agreement came during a multiparty grand jirga, hosted by the provincial government on Thursday.

Sources said that since a certain procedure has to be followed for lifting the ban, it was decided that the notification of the ban would be, for the time being, ‘held in abeyance’.

The sources said it was also agreed that the ‘proscribed’ PTM would be allowed to hold its scheduled Pashtoon Qaumi Jirga today (Friday), which would be hosted by the KP government and attended by Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur.

They further informed that Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi had empowered a provincial government’s jirga for holding talks with the banned PTM for resolving several controversial issues. This jirga will be led by Speaker KP Assembly Babar Saleem Swati with parliamentary leaders in the legislature and MPAs from the treasury and opposition benches as its members.

“KP government will be hosting the PTM’s jirga and will make all the necessary arrangements but with certain conditions there will be no inflammatory slogans during the PTM’s Jirga nor will anyone bring the Afghan national flag,” the sources said, adding that these conditions would be conveyed to the PTM leadership by the Jirga.

The PTM was yet to offer any comment on the development.

On Sunday, the federal government imposed the ban on PTM, citing threats to national peace and security. The ban was imposed under Section 11B of the Anti-Terrorism Act of 1997. The notification read that PTM posed a “significant danger” to public order and safety in the country.

As soon as the notification was issued, a crackdown was launched against the PTM workers in Peshawar and other parts of the province. The venue of its planned Jirga in Jamrud was raided and dozens of PTM activists were arrested. According to the PTM, three persons died and 10 others were injured in the police action.

Lawmakers during a sitting of the KP Assembly on Wednesday condemned the police action. The treasury and the opposition benches agreed to constitute a committee to control the situation.

On Thursday, the KP government held the grand Jirga with CM Gandapur in the chair. The grand Jirga was attended by Interior Minister Naqvi, KP Governor Faisal Karim Kundi, representatives of political parties including Amir Maqam of PML-N, Aimal Wali Khan (ANP), Prof Ibrahim of Jamaat-i-Islami, National Democratic Movement’s Mohsin Dawar and others.

Sources privy to the developments said all the political leadership from KP is on the same page on the restoration of peace in the province.

“They all condemned banning the PTM and police action against it,” the sources claimed, adding that CM Gandapur, flanked by the interior minister and the governor, said that holding public gatherings was everyone’s constitutional right.

“The chief minister told the grand Jirga that KP government had asked the federal government to let the provincial government deal with and control the situation, but the latter replied that there was no possibility of engagement with the banned PTM and issued direct orders for the police action,” the sources said.

Speaking at the Jirga, the participants said that PTM activists belong to several political parties including PTI, ANP and PPP and that their demands were genuine, adding that the grand Jirga should have been held earlier.

However, the participants said, “Better late than never.”

The sources said that interior ministry did not oppose the grand Jirga’s proposals and appreciated the political leadership in KP for being on the same page.

A statement issued from the CM Secretariat read that after extensive discussions, members from the provincial assembly and leaders of the political parties, who attended the grand Jirga, reposed their full confidence in the chief minister and entrusted him with the responsibility to hold the jirga for peaceful resolution of the matter.

The sources said that Jirga members later visited Khyber district to meet the banned PTM’s representatives for talks. The meeting between the government Jirga and PTM leadership, however, could not take place since the PTM’s representatives were yet to arrive till late in the night.

Published in Dawn, October 11th, 2024