ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Monday constituted a five-member cabinet committee to hold dialogue with Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) – the two parties currently staging anti-government sit-ins in the federal capital.

The committee has also been tasked with establishing contacts and coordination with the reconciliation committee formed by the political parties and facilitating them.

The committee comprises federal ministers Lt-Gen (retd) Abdul Qadir Baloch, Muhammad Akram Durrani, Ahsan Iqbal, Khawaja Saad Rafiq and Special Assistant to the Prime Minister, Irfan Siddiqui.

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The decision comes as political leaders make efforts to resolve the deadlock between the government and dissenting PTI over the latter's call for the prime minister's resignation over allegations that his party rigged last year's general elections.

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Both the PTI chief and Qadri had promised to mobilise hundreds of thousands of supporters to capitalise on popular dissatisfaction with the corruption, power cuts and insecurity that blight daily life in Pakistan and oust the government.

But Khan was left looking increasingly isolated on Monday as mass support failed to materialise and other opposition parties refused to rally to his call.