• JUI-F chief meets opposition, PPP leaders separately in different rooms
• Bilawal makes three trips to Maulana’s residence in span of 24 hours
• PTI team expected to meet Imran today for his counsel

ISLAMABAD: Opposition leaders and members of the ruling coalition held simultaneous meetings with JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Friday, as consensus over the 26th constitutional amendment seemed nearer and nearer.

Maulana Fazl, playing a key mediating role, facilitated parallel discussions between the PTI-led opposition and the government’s side, represented by the PPP. The meetings, held at Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s residence in the afternoon, were a continuation of earlier meetings that stretched into the early hours of Friday.

Later on Friday night, Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar also visited the Maulana’s residence and held an hour-long meeting.

Interestingly, the Maulana met with delegations from the opposition and the PPP in different rooms, but both delegations were in the same building simultaneously.

Among the first to arrive was Senator Allama Nasir Abbas, leader of the Majlis-i-Wahdat-i-Muslimeen (MWM), at around 3pm.

Delegations from opposition groups, including Sahibzada Hamid Raza of the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) and leaders from the Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M), followed shortly thereafter. The PTI delegation, led by Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, also included Omar Ayub, Asad Qaiser and Barrister Ali Zafar.

As the opposition’s discussions began at 4pm, the PPP delegation, led by Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, along with Naveed Qamar and Murtaza Wahab, arrived 15 minutes later. Maulana Fazlur Rehman temporarily left the opposition leaders to greet the PPP delegation, holding a separate half-hour meeting with them.

The JUI-F delegation at the meeting included Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri, Maulana Ataur Rahman, Maulana Abdul Wasay and Kamran Murtaza. Later, the PPP leaders joined the opposition groups, including PTI, MWM, SIC and BNP-M leaders, and exchanged greetings.

Speaking to Dawn after the meetings, Senator Abbas praised Mr Bhutto-Zardari, calling him “a decent person who knows how to respect elders”.

He also lauded Maulana Fazlur Rehman for acting as a bridge between the government and the opposition during tense discussions on the constitutional amendment in recent days.

Later, speaking to the media at around 5:30pm, Barrister Gohar Ali Khan said that while discussions on the 26th constitutional amendment had progressed, no formal talks were held with the PPP leadership on this matter.

He indicated that a consensus was within reach and details would be presented to PTI founder Imran Khan for final approval. “We expect to meet him tomorrow (Saturday) and reach a conclusion,” he added.

Sources said that a team of leaders, consisting of Barrister Gohar, Barrister Ali Zafar, Salman Akram Raja and other leaders would try to meet Mr Khan in Adiala jail today (Saturday) to seek his opinion on the draft. The restrictions on visitors to Adiala jail, which had kept party leaders from meeting Mr Khan earlier, expired on Oct 18.

As they left the meeting, the PTI delegation told reporters that they had not held discussions with the government and were scheduled to meet Imran Khan at 8am today.

Meanwhile, one opposition member revealed that while most aspects of the draft amendment were agreed upon, the selection process for the chief justice of Pakistan — specifically, choosing from a panel of the three senior-most judges — remained contentious.

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The PTI delegation deferred the decision until consultation with Imran Khan in prison, whereas other opposition parties have given their consent to this point as well as other clauses of the draft amendment.

At around 9:30 pm, the PTI delegation returned to Maulana’s residence for dinner. However, Deputy PM Dar and PPP’s Naveed Qamar soon arrived and briefly met with the PTI team before proceeding to talk with the JUI-F emir.

The government delegation emerged from Maulana’s residence around 11pm. Sources in JUI-F revealed that Mr Dar had raised concerns over certain aspects of the draft amendment approved by the opposition, particularly regarding the trial of civilians in military courts.

Rushing to the capital from Hyderabad, Mr Bhutto-Zardari once again called on the Maulana post-midnight, in what he said would be a last-ditch effort to secure the JUI-F chief’s support for the amendment.

Published in Dawn, October 19th, 2024