KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi Tried to Sabotage the Negotiations: Mohsin Naqvi

Federal Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi has said the government and opposition had reached agreement on “99 percent” of issues during negotiations before Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi rejected the final draft, accusing him of sabotaging the dialogue.

Addressing a press conference in Lahore, Naqvi said the opposition delegation had participated in the negotiations in a constructive manner and made serious efforts to find a solution.

“The opposition delegation participated in the talks in an excellent manner and tried to find a solution,” Naqvi said, adding that both sides had agreed on almost everything they could realistically secure through the negotiations.

According to the interior minister, an agreement had been prepared and he had personally taken a copy to President Asif Ali Zardari, while Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had also been fully briefed on the negotiations.

Naqvi said only one or two issues remained unresolved and around 99 percent of the matters had already been agreed upon. However, when he returned after meeting the president, he was informed that several changes had been sought in the draft.

He said the agreement was drafted four times and changed four times during the negotiating process.

Naqvi accused KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi of ultimately blocking the agreement after the draft had been finalised.

“We told them that if Sohail Afridi was going to make the decisions, he should have come to the negotiations himself,” Naqvi said, adding that the chief minister rejected the draft after it had been finalised.

The interior minister said the government would not have entered the negotiations had it known that the KP government would ultimately veto the agreement. He announced that there would now be no further negotiations with the opposition.

The latest round of government-opposition negotiations had focused significantly on PTI’s planned long march towards Islamabad. The government maintained that peaceful protest was a democratic right but insisted that protesters would not be permitted to enter and disrupt the federal capital, while PTI maintained that its long march remained intact and described it as its political right. The disagreement over the march was among the key issues preventing a final agreement.

Naqvi reiterated that the government would not allow Islamabad to witness a repeat of the events of May 9 under any circumstances.

“One thing is absolutely clear: we will not allow another May 9-like incident under any circumstances, regardless of how you come,” he said.

He said the government would ensure implementation of the Islamabad High Court’s order and warned that Sohail Afridi would be held responsible if any damage occurred.

Naqvi said he had also made the government’s position clear to the opposition delegation during the previous day’s meeting.

“You want to protest, absolutely do so, but we will under no circumstances allow anyone to storm Islamabad,” he said.

The interior minister warned that any worker or leader arrested for violating the law during the protest would face legal proceedings.

He added that if PTI members broke the law, authorities would pursue those responsible and take action against them.

The remarks come after the latest round of talks between the government and opposition ended without an agreement, with both sides acknowledging that a deadlock remained over key issues, including the proposed long march and counterterrorism cooperation.