Despite days of negotiations between the government and the protesting parties, neither side looked too happy with the outcome of the talks.

Late on Wednesday night, Pakistan Awami Tehreek chief Tahirul Qadri announced that talks with the government had broken down and said that he would make his final address to the sit-in on Thursday. At his side was Sindh Governor Ishratul Ibad, who hinted that if the deadlock prevailed, MQM chief Altaf Hussain might lose patience.

Imran Khan seemed more optimistic, despite publicly claiming that the talks between the two sides had ended in a stalemate. The PTI has maintained that the government has all but agreed to their demands; the prime minister’s resignation being the only stumbling block.

The prime minister, meanwhile, put up a brave face before parliament, as he vowed to defend the Constitution but stopped short of outlining a specific roadmap on how he planned to defuse ongoing tensions. He cancelled his scheduled visit to Turkey.

Earlier in the day, Mr Khan said he had been offered the post of deputy prime minister, an offer he had refused. This revelation followed the leak of a letter, written by a senior PML-N leader to the prime minister, suggesting that the post of deputy PM be created to end the prevailing impasse.

Published in Dawn, August 28th, 2014