- Fawad Chaudhry, Imran Ismail among those pushing reconciliation.
- Committee on National Dialogue has influential overseas Pakistanis.
- Overseas Pakistanis willing to invest up to $1bn in Pakistan.
ISLAMABAD: A group of former Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders, Fawad Chaudhry, Imran Ismail and Mehmood Moulvi, have quietly pushed again reconciliation initiative aimed at cooling political temperatures in the country, particularly between the military establishment and the PTI, sources told The News.
The initiative is being pursued under the banner of a Committee on National Dialogue, which, according to the sources, includes several influential overseas Pakistanis. The trio is said to be in contact with an “official” as well as government ministers in an effort to secure relief for the PTI and create space for dialogue.
Unlike earlier attempts focused on PTI founder Khan’s incarceration in Adiala Jail, the group’s immediate emphasis is on Kot Lakhpat Jail, where several senior PTI leaders including Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Mian Mahmoodur Rashid, Ejaz Chaudhry, Umar Cheema and Dr Yasmin Rashid are currently imprisoned.
Interestingly, these Kot Lakhpat inmates have already publicly expressed support for dialogue, terming it the only viable way forward. However, Khan had earlier rejected their advice, publicly ruling out any talks and insisting that street protest remained the sole option.
Sources said the trio’s strategy is to pave the way for the release of the Kot Lakhpat detainees, thereby enabling the emergence of a PTI leadership that, in their view, better understands ground realities and is willing to adopt a more moderate and pragmatic approach.
When contacted, Chaudhry confirmed to The News that the Committee on National Dialogue had indeed been constituted with the objective of normalising the political atmosphere and bringing an end to the prolonged confrontation between the PTI and the military establishment.
He said the effort had begun several weeks ago but suffered a serious setback following a tweet from Adiala Jail. Chaudhry disclosed that the committee members had already met the Kot Lakhpat inmates and that several influential overseas Pakistanis had joined the initiative.
According to him, these overseas Pakistanis are prepared to invest up to one billion dollars in Pakistan if the reconciliation effort succeeds.
Chaudhry added that the group is once again reaching out to the government to explore the possibility of meaningful dialogue.
Sources further revealed that a meeting of several former PTI leaders had taken place a few months ago to deliberate on ways to normalise the political situation. Besides Chaudhry, Ismail and Mehmood, the meeting was attended by Asad Umar, Shafqat Mahmood and Ghulam Sarwar.
However, no consensus could be reached on a single course of action, prompting the trio to proceed independently with what they believe is a workable plan.
Originally published in https://www.thenews.pk/print/1387274-focus-shifts-from-adiala-to-kot-lakhpat-a-quiet-move-towards-reconciliation
