ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif wants the MQM back in the parliament at ‘any cost’ despite the annoyed party’s inflexible ‘no’ on Thursday, close aides said.

“The PM is still optimistic the MQM (Muttahida Qaumi Movement) will return. Fazlur Rehman has again been contacted (by the government) to placate them. However, Fazl wants guarantees that once a deal is finalised between him and the MQM, the PM should implement it,” a senior minister, involved in the government-MQM negotiation process, told The Nation.

Fazlur Rehman, the head of his own faction of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI), had contacted MQM leader Farooq Sattar before he left for Karachi requesting him to stay back in Islamabad but the Muttahida team did not listen.
Farooq had earlier angrily stated, “They (government) can do whatever they want with our resignations. We are not coming back now.”
The prime minister immediately summoned Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, a close confidante, and directed him to engage JUI-F chief again to pacify the MQM. Fazl was contacted within minutes and appealed to convince the MQM to resume talks. But the cleric’s call was politely refused by the MQM.
Farooq Sattar held a news conference in the morning after the party’s marathon meeting in the Parliament Lodges. He held the government’s ‘non-serious approach’ responsible for the collapse of negotiations, saying that no redressal committee was formed despite the lapse of 20 days.
“MQM is being marginalised under the garb of Karachi operation as the party’s political and welfare activities are subject to an unannounced ban,” he claimed.
The government and MQM Wednesday night held a third round of negotiations in Islamabad where both parties exchanged drafts of terms for a possible agreement. The next round of talks was expected to take place on Thursday and both parties had requested Fazl to join the table.
But before the two sides could engage in talks, Farooq put forth three basic demands: Undeclared ban on MQM’s welfare activities be lifted, MQM’s political offices be allowed to function and Altaf Hussain’s recorded statements be allowed to go on air on electronic media.
He said they decided to withdraw from the ongoing negotiation with the government because it was no use at all to continue the talks in the face of government’s ‘non-serious attitude.’

Sattar said the MQM lawmakers tendered their resignations from assemblies and the Senate on August 12 and even after a lapse of almost 20 days no grievance-redressal committee was formed by the government.

Senior JUI-F leader Senator Hafiz Hamdullah told The Nation his party was still optimistic the MQM will return to the assemblies. “They are basically not against the talks but the attitude of the government. They don’t want to hold talks without concrete sureties,” he commented. “The government has contacted Fazl to cool down the MQM and bring it back to the table but our leaders want the PM to give assurance the agreement will be respected,” he added.

But Fazl will only meet the MQM leaders if the prime minister gives his word, the senator said. He said the Wednesday meeting between government and MQM failed because there were no solid guarantees from the PM.

“It is not a ministers’ game now, the prime minister himself must step in. He is the one who can take a decision. You know the MQM is using the government’s name but is actually protesting against those who are behind the Karachi operation,” the legislator pointed out.
He maintained if the government agreed to accept some MQM demands, the talks will resume soon. “If the government would not give anything, the MQM may not return,” he added.

Another JUI-F lawmaker Attaur Rehman told The Nation, “We have played a positive role in the recent days and will again be ready to calm down the MQM. We are optimistic the issue will be resolved through talks.”

The senator said Fazl was in contact with the government and the MQM to carry the things forward. The government has recently come out of a crisis as the lawmakers of the PTI were allowed to continue as parliament members despite prolonged absence sans intimation.

The JUI-F and the MQM had filed motions in the National Assembly to de-seat the PTI members as they remained absent for over 40 days without seeking leave. The motions were withdrawn after Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and the PPP convinced the two parties to ‘save democracy.’