LAKKI MARWAT — The hours-long negotiations between the government and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) ended without any breakthrough, despite positive reports, and now PTI-led opposition plans to go ahead with its long march from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa today.
The first phase of the PTI-led long march is scheduled to start at 1 pm from Gandi Chowk in Lakki Marwat, setting the stage for a fresh confrontation between the government and the opposition. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, while announcing the march schedule on X, said participants from Tank, Dera Ismail Khan, South Waziristan, North Waziristan, Bannu and Lakki Marwat would join the convoy.
The first day’s march will end with an overnight stay near Karak.
PTI Long March
The convoy will resume its journey on October 5, when local residents of Karak are expected to join at noon. The convoy will depart at 12:30 p.m. and spend the night near Kohat. On October 6, participants from Kohat, Hangu, Kurram and Orakzai will join the march at noon. The convoy will then head towards Peshawar and stay overnight near Matani.
The march will move again on October 7, departing from Budh Berh in Peshawar at 12:30 p.m. Participants from Khyber district will join there, while people from other parts of Peshawar will join at Kohat Road Bridge and the motorway toll plaza. The convoy is scheduled to spend that night near Charsadda Interchange.
On October 8, the march will depart from Charsadda Interchange at 12:30 p.m., with participants from Charsadda and Mohmand joining the convoy. People arriving from different parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will ultimately converge at Khairabad, where they will spend the night. The leadership says the strategy for the next phase of the march will be announced there.
PTI-Opposition Talks
The march schedule was announced as government-opposition negotiations once again failed to break the political deadlock.
The second round of talks began Saturday evening at Parliament House under the chairmanship of National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq and continued for several hours before ending late at night without an agreement. Opposition Leader in the Senate Allama Raja Nasir Abbas said the deadlock remained, particularly over PTI founder Imran Khan’s meeting with party representatives.
He also said the two sides remained divided over the issue of combating terrorism in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan confirmed that the long march would proceed according to schedule. He said the opposition’s demands included meetings with Imran Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, while negotiations also stalled over certain counterterrorism-related issues.
The government, however, put the blame squarely on the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa administration. Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry said the two sides had reached agreement on most issues but failed to conclude a deal because the KP government did not provide assurances of cooperation in counterterrorism operations.
Talal Chaudhry said the federal government’s position was clear that provincial government must cooperate with the centre in the fight against terrorism. Prime Minister’s Adviser on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah said the government had amended the draft agreement two or three times in an effort to reach a settlement. But, he claimed, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government remained unwilling to agree to cooperation on counterterrorism.
He maintained that cooperation against terrorism was a constitutional and legal responsibility of the provincial government and said the government could not compromise on the issue.
Breakthrough in Govt-Opposition Talks ahead of PTI’s Long March to Islamabad
Meeting with Imran Khan in Limbo
According to Rana Sanaullah, the talks also covered the opposition’s demands concerning meetings with Imran Khan and his medical treatment. He called these matters as comparatively minor, saying they could be handled under prison rules and the applicable law.
But the failure to resolve the issues has left the political crisis unresolved, and the long march firmly on track.
With negotiations stalled, Barrister Gohar reiterated that the long march would go ahead. Givernment leaders, meanwhile, delivered a blunt warning: the march will not be allowed to enter Islamabad’s limits.
The standoff now moves from the negotiating table to the streets, with the PTI convoy preparing to advance through Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the government signaling that it will not allow the protest to enter the federal capital.
News Desk
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