JUI-F, TTAP join hands in parliament

Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman and Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) Chairman Mahmood Khan Achakzai on Thursday held their first meeting with opposition leaders, agreeing to establish a united opposition and begin the process from parliament. The meeting, which was also attended by PTI leaders, brought together the JUI-F and Tehreek Tahafuz Aaine-Pakistan as part of efforts to build a broader opposition platform. Further consultations are expected, with sources saying a joint parliamentary party meeting of opposition parties will be convened on Friday. Fazl reached the opposition chamber along with a JUI-F delegation to meet Mahmood Khan Achakzai. Achakzai and Fazl later proceeded together from the opposition.  The opposition lobby to the opposition chamber, accompanied by PTI leaders. The JUI-F and the TTAP agreed to establish a united opposition, with the process to begin from parliament. Fazl made the announcement while speaking to the media alongside opposition leaders. “Today was the first sitting with the opposition. We have decided that a united opposition should be formed. This was the first meeting and there will be further consultations,” he said. Sources said the meeting also agreed that a joint parliamentary party meeting of opposition parties would be convened on Friday. The participants also discussed the health of PTI founder Imran Khan, according to sources. The opposition alliance would also hold a meeting with Fazl, sources said. Asked whether the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) would also be included in the opposition alliance, Fazl said the PPP was part of the government and that they were discussing the opposition. He said an all-parties conference should also be discussed. Asked by a journalist whether the opposition parties would stand together on the streets as well or only in parliament, Fazlur Rehman quipped, “We recite Surah Fatiha and you have already reached Surah Nas.”