This was followed by Minister for Privatisation Commission Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh and his two aides - Legal Consultant Asad Khan Khel and Consultant for PTCL sell-off Aamer Qawi's - departure for UAE for fresh round of talks with Etisalat management.
A senior official of the Privatisation Commission confirmed late on Monday night that the official team, headed by Dr Hafeez Shaikh, had flown to UAE to negotiate the PTCL deal. He also confirmed that the official team held daylong consultations with the Privatisation Commission Board prior to its departure.
The official said: "The Board endorsed the renewed process of talks with Etisalat for the PTCL sell-off in its informal meeting here that lasted many hours and gave its mandate to the official team to negotiate the deal for its logical conclusion."
According to him, the Privatisation Commission team and Etisalat management would meet in the UAE on Tuesday.
However, officials privy to Monday's development said they had no idea how long the new round of talks would take. They said they had only one thing in mind that the PTCL deal was of extraordinary importance for the privatisation programme and it should end on a positive note.