Former information minister Fawad Chaudhry has expressed hope that Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman would convene an all opposition parties meeting on the “restoration” of basic human rights in the country.

“Shahid Khaqan Abbasi will also join for the meeting after coming from Davos. We want to engage him and civil society members,” he said while appearing on the Aaj News programme Rubaroo via video link on Sunday.

Senior PTI leaders, including Asad Qaiser, are scheduled to meet Fazl on Monday (tomorrow) as jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s party engages with opposition parties to form a united anti-government alliance.

On Friday, Khan’s party leaders announced that they had called off talks with the government after the latter failed to fulfil their demands.

When asked about his meeting with Fazl, Fawad said that he informed the religiopolitical leader that an “effective movement” was difficult until an opposition alliance was formed. He claimed that the JUI-F was also aware of the importance of an alliance.

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But the former information minister claimed that Fazl has concerns over PTI after the party did not take him into confidence over starting talks with the PML-N and the PPP.

He was of the view that there was no benefit of talks between the PTI and the government. “If the government is serious, Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Mahmood Khan Achakzai, and Shahid Khaqan Abbasi should be at the centre of talks as Khan has no bitterness about these people.”