Islamabad, October 7,2026: Adviser to the Prime Minister on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah said on Wednesday that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) could not pressure the government into accepting its demands by creating political instability and “holding the state hostage.”
Speaking to the media in Islamabad, Sanaullah said the government’s doors remained open for dialogue, but negotiations could not be used as a tool to force the government into accepting political demands.
His remarks came a day after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif called on the PTI leadership to sit down with the government for talks and abandon its planned protests.
“The doors for talks are open,” Sanaullah said, while making it clear that the government would not allow negotiations to be used to strong-arm it.
The PML-N leader accused the PTI of contributing to political instability and said the party had been “successful” in obstructing peace. He regretted that political discourse had increasingly turned into a culture of personal attacks and intolerance.
The remarks followed the breakdown of hours-long negotiations between the government and opposition during the second round of talks. The discussions, held at Parliament House, focused on the PTI’s planned march to Islamabad.
After the talks ended without an agreement, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi accused Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi of “sabotaging” the negotiations by changing the draft of an agreement despite earlier understandings.
PTI leaders, however, said reconciliation with the government was not possible unless the party’s incarcerated founder, Imran Khan, was included in the dialogue process. They also maintained that the government’s unwillingness to pursue a collective strategy against terrorism contributed to the failure of the talks.
Sanaullah rejected the PTI’s claim that it was being excluded from decisions regarding the federal counterterrorism policy, calling the stance “completely wrong” and “misleading.”
He said the reasons behind the deadlock in negotiations had also been misinterpreted.
“The policy on countering terrorism is already being acted upon,” Sanaullah said, referring to intelligence-based operations (IBOs) being conducted regularly.
He claimed that the PTI was opposed to such operations and said the armed forces and law enforcement agencies were continuing to sacrifice their lives in the fight against terrorism.
Sanaullah also rejected claims that new large-scale military operations would result in further displacement. He said ongoing IBOs would continue under the existing counterterrorism policy.
In June 2024, the government announced a reinvigorated “Operation Azm-i-Istehkam,” but later clarified, following criticism, that the initiative involved intensifying ongoing IBOs and subsequently referred to it as “Vision Azm-i-Istehkam.”
Sanaullah said Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir had previously clarified that no one would be internally displaced as a result of the ongoing operations.
Afghanistan policy
Commenting on Pakistan’s strained relations with Afghanistan, Sanaullah said Islamabad was justified in demanding that Afghan territory not be used for terrorist activities against Pakistan.
He said Pakistan had held several rounds of talks with Afghan authorities and had presented evidence regarding terrorist attacks originating from Afghan territory.
According to Sanaullah, the Afghan interim government had accepted the evidence as genuine but declined to provide assurances that its territory would not be used for terrorist attacks against Pakistan.
He said Pakistan maintained the right to neutralize training camps or other activities on Afghan soil that could subsequently threaten Pakistan.
Sanaullah said the policy was based on Pakistan’s experience over more than four decades.
He accused the PTI of opposing the policy because, in his view, it was placing political interests above the national interest.
Criticism of KP government
Sanaullah also criticized the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government over its response to the security situation in the province.
Referring to recent terrorist attacks, he said the victims included children, civilians and security personnel from KP.
He criticized what he described as a contrast between the loss of lives in the province and political activities linked to the planned march on Islamabad.
“Prioritising personal and political agendas over national interest is not permissible by law, the Constitution or political ethics,” Sanaullah said.
He also criticized the KP government’s performance, alleging that governance and efforts to improve the lives of citizens were not among the PTI’s priorities.
