PTI decides against participating in Peshawar apex committee meeting

PESHAWAR: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Friday declined an invite from Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to participate in the apex committee meeting being held in Peshawar to mull over strategy following the mosque tragedy, ARY News reported.

Former National Assembly (NA) speaker Asad Qaiser said that PTI leadership has decided that the party would not participate in the apex committee.

“On one hand the incumbent government is victimising leaders of PTI and on another side they [govt] are extending invitations for sessions,” he said.

His comments came after it emerged that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had also invited two representatives of the PTI to the apex committee meeting and the invitation in this regard had been conveyed by federal minister Ayaz Sadiq.

The apex committee meeting is underway in Peshawar under the chairmanship of PM Shehbaz to discuss the terror incident that occurred at a Peshawar Mosque.

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The committee will consider measures to eradicate terrorism, including the Counter-Terrorism Department and the up-gradation of police.

Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Asim Munir is also participating in the meeting. The chief ministers of the four provinces and Gilgit-Baltistan and the prime minister of Azad Kashmir are attending the meeting.

All stakeholders, including the police, rangers and senior officers of sensitive institutions are also present in the committee meeting.