Taliban have taken control of my constituency: Sher Afzal Marwat

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Sher Afzal Khan Marwat on Tuesday dismissed claims that terrorist organisation Tehreek-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) were not present in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, where his party holds power.

Speaking on the floor of the National Assembly, the lawmaker said, “I cannot return to my constituency because the Taliban have taken control there, and many other districts share the same problem.”

He also highlighted that the province is engulfed in unrest, and inflation is increasing.

Recalling the claims of Defence Minister Khawaja Asif that PTI should make the first move for negotiation, Marwat emphasised that political parties must rest aside their egos.

PTI leader called on Rana Sanaullah to share the government's official stance on holding dialogue with PTI, adding that all stakeholders must sit together and find a solution to the polarised situation in the country.

On December 6, imprisoned former prime minister Imran Khan, in a message on X (formerly Twitter) had said that he had formed a five-member negotiation committee comprising Opposition Leader in the National Assembly Omar Ayub Khan, CM KP Ali Amin Gandapur, Chief Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) Sahibzada Hamid Raza, lawyer Salman Akram Raja and former NA Speaker Asad Qaiser.

The founder of Pakistan's biggest opposition party had also announced that if two demands, including the formation of a judicial commission to investigate the May 9 and November 26 events and the release of the political prisoner, remain unmet, the “civil disobedience movement” will follow.

On the floor of NA, Rana Sanaullah noted that six weeks ago, PM Shehbaz Sharif went straight to the opposition members and shook hands with them, adding that Shehbaz Sharif announced that the government was ready to hold negotiations with the opposition on every matter. However, lawmaker Omer Ayub Khan responded using harsh words.

Sanaullah also stressed that the parliamentary democratic system cannot work until the opposition leader and leader of the house don’t sit and have a dialogue.

“For the first time, a pleasant breeze came from the opposition [...] but talks cannot be held at gunpoint,” Khawaja Asif responded to Marwat on the same floor.

The minister reiterated that the repeated attacks on Islamabad and calls for civil disobedience movement will not pave the way for negotiations. 

“The nation is suffering losses in our political war,” he said, stressing the need for “a change that would create a good environment.”

Khawaja Asif recalled the Parachinar incident by saying that, as per the constitution, it was the responsibility of the provincial government to solve the disputes between the two clans in the Kurram district, adding that the KP government prioritised last month's protest march towards the federal capital instead of solving the Kurram land dispute.