Fazlur Rehman Never Sought Governorship: Rana Sanaullah

Rana Sanaullah says JUI-F chief declined government’s post-election alliance offer, urges PTI to support fight against terrorism before pursuing political demands.

 Monitoring Desk 

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister’s Adviser on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah has dismissed claims that JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman sought the governorship, saying the government had invited him to join its alliance after the 2024 general elections, but he declined the offer.

Speaking on a private TV programme, Sanaullah said JUI-F had merely expressed its democratic views in parliament, while stressing that the government believed imposing an emergency and Governor’s Rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had become unavoidable.

 Sanaullah said the growing wave of terrorism posed an existential threat to Pakistan and differed significantly from the challenges the country had faced over the past four decades. He alleged that India was funding terrorists in Afghanistan and supporting their training camps, adding that India had been left frustrated following its defeat in Marka-e-Haq.

 The adviser stressed that the nation and all political parties must unite against terrorism. He urged Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) to stand alongside the armed forces and fulfil its constitutional and legal responsibilities.

 Sanaullah said the government remained willing to implement arrangements regarding meetings and hospital visits, describing these as political matters that could be addressed separately.

Referring to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, he said Afridi should first fulfil his responsibilities towards the state and cooperate with the government in combating terrorism before raising other demands.

“He should come forward and work with us first; the other matters can be considered afterwards,” Sanaullah said, adding that Afridi should not make his participation conditional on being reinstated as chief minister.

He said parliament had suspended the provincial assembly for 60 days, after which it would review whether the assembly could resume its role. Sanaullah added that during negotiations, the government had urged the opposition to unite against terrorism in the interest of the state and the country's survival. He maintained that political parties should fulfil their national responsibilities before pursuing their political demands.

The adviser also criticised PTI’s political activities ahead of its long march, claiming that the party’s visits to Punjab and Sindh had harmed both PTI and its government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

He urged PTI to abandon conditional demands, support the fight against terrorism and pursue its political agenda afterwards. Sanaullah said he agreed with Faisal Vawda’s position on supporting the fight against terrorism but disagreed with his remarks against democracy and political parties. He added that he had advised Vawda to refrain from making such statements.

 According to Sanaullah, Vawda was not, in his understanding, speaking on behalf of the government or the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N). On the proposal to create new provinces, Sanaullah said his party and the government considered the issue complex and believed it required debate in parliament. He said all lawmakers should be given an opportunity to express their views before any decision was reached through consensus.