The imprisoned former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan, has announced that his political party is ready to engage in “conditional negotiations” with the country’s powerful military. Khan has also appointed a representative for the discussions. In a post on his official X profile, Khan stated, “We will hold conditional negotiations if the military leadership appoints its representative.” This statement was made from his prison cell, according to a message cited on Wednesday.
The military’s media department has not yet responded to a request for comment from Al Jazeera. The military has directly governed Pakistan for nearly half of the country’s 76-year history but currently denies any involvement in politics.
Khan has set specific conditions for the negotiations, including demands for “clean and transparent” elections and the withdrawal of what he describes as “false” charges against his supporters. He has selected Mahmood Khan Achakzai, a close political ally and leader of a smaller party, as his representative in the talks.
The government led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has accused Khan of “pleading” for negotiations with the military and urged him instead to apologize for his previous attacks on the institution. Marriyum Aurangzeb, a spokesperson for the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), stated that “the self-proclaimed revolutionary, who used to say he would not beg for forgiveness, is now humbled to ask the armed forces to talk to him.”
Federal Information Minister Attaullah Tarar described Khan’s offer as a “conspiracy against the country” and referred to it as yet another attempt by the founder of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party to involve state institutions in his “dirty politics.” Khan has been incarcerated since August of last year and has been convicted in multiple cases leading up to a national election scheduled for February. He is also fighting several other lawsuits, which he and his PTI party claim are politically motivated to prevent his return to power.
Candidates backed by PTI performed better than expected in the recent elections, and a court has recently ruled that they are entitled to additional reserved seats, although this is still insufficient for a parliamentary majority. On July 22, police raided PTI’s headquarters in the capital, Islamabad, a week after Prime Minister Sharif’s government, believed to be supported by the military, promised to ban the largest opposition party.
Khan has now been imprisoned for nearly a year, but earlier this month, a judge in Islamabad overturned his conviction for illegal marriage, while the Supreme Court awarded PTI several parliamentary seats — a decision that will make it the largest party in the National Assembly. Both outcomes are viewed as significant defeats for Sharif, who secured a parliamentary majority after the February elections by forming a coalition.
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan expressed that the attempt to ban PTI is “a huge blow to democratic norms” and “smacks of political desperation.” Khan, who maintains that the numerous cases against him are fabricated to hinder his political comeback, remains in prison under new charges of inciting protests and corruption. A panel of experts from the United Nations concluded earlier this month that Khan’s detention “lacked legal basis and was apparently intended to disqualify him from running for political office.”