RAWALPINDI:
Infighting within Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) appeared to be widening over corruption allegations in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa as senior leader Azam Khan Swati has claimed that party supremo Imran Khan has called for the immediate resignation of the K-P Assembly speaker following damning findings by the province’s anti-corruption committee.
Swati further revealed that Imran has also ordered the removal of PTI’s Mansehra district president and general secretary over graft allegations, signaling a major shake-up in the party’s ranks.
Speaking to the media outside Adiala Jail on Tuesday, Swati said he met the incarcerated PTI founder along with two others, where they discussed pressing party matters.
Swati reassured Imran that PTI’s Secretary General Salman Akram Raja would not cut any political deals.
He revealed that despite serious charges, PTI’s Mansehra leaders, Sardar Khan and Ikramullah, were given party positions.
He urged that findings of the anti-corruption committee be made public, a suggestion the PTI founder reportedly endorsed by calling for the K-P speaker’s resignation.
Swati also informed the party chief about concerns related to party’s K-P President Junaid Akbar’s appointments, to which the PTI founder directed an immediate reversal of Akbar’s decisions.
Regarding Punjab’s political situation, Swati briefed him on the obstacles faced by PTI leader Alia Hamza.
It is pertinent to note that former federal minister and ex-senator Azam Khan Swati, while addressing a welcome reception earlier in February, had alleged that some lawmakers in K-P were involved in corruption, adding he would discuss the issue with Imran Khan, during his meeting with him in jail.
Later that month, K-P Assembly Speaker Babar Saleem Swati urged PTI vice president Azam Khan Swati to identify all lawmakers involved in corruption in the province.
“Swati’s statement, in which he alleged corruption without naming those responsible, has created chaos within the party. He should reveal the names of those involved in irregularities so we can hold them accountable,” he said in a statement.
Speaking to the media on Tuesday, Swati further said that K-P Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur was not turning a blind eye to corruption issues and had personally authorised his visit to Adiala Jail.
He confirmed that Imran had sent a message to PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja, directing the immediate removal of Mansehra’s district president and general secretary from their positions.
Meanwhile, PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja has stated that he will address Azam Swati’s concerns with Junaid Akbar and is open to discussions regarding any issues in Punjab.
Dismissing reports of internal conflicts, Raja insisted that minor disputes are common in political parties.
Speaking to the media outside Adiala Jail, alongside other PTI leaders, PTI founder’s focal person Niazullah Niazi revealed that the Islamabad High Court’s (IHC) larger bench ruling on visitation rights was violated, as only Azam Swati was permitted a meeting based on a pre-approved list by Raja.
Niazi stressed that PTI fully supports the court’s directives but accused authorities of repeatedly defying them. He announced plans to file a contempt of court petition against the violations.
At the press conference, lawyer Mubashir Maqsood Awan revealed that Imran complained about being denied access to books, phone calls with his children for the past seven months, and political meetings.
Raja, reiterating concerns over judicial orders being disregarded, said this was the third instance of authorities arranging unauthorised visits while blocking those on PTI’s approved list.
He confirmed that PTI would take legal action against the repeated violations.
