PTI core committee member resigns as infighting intensifies

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmaker Junaid Akbar on Saturday stepped down from party's core committee, saying that he was not allowed to meet incarcerated founder Imran Khan. 

Conflicts among the PTI have come to the fore with some members, including Sher Afzal Marwat, have complained about the party leadership and their decisions. 

Akbar's resignation comes just a day after Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Omar Ayub stepped down as the PTI secretary general, saying there would be more changes in the party’s organisational structure.

Following this, Marwat demanded resignation from PTI Senator Shibli Faraz, alleging that they did not allow him to meet incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan.

The same allegations have been put forth by Akbar who said that "certain people" meet the PTI founder while they are not allowed to go and meet him.

"Their interests lie with each other and we are only told that the current party policy aligns with that of Imran Khan," said Akbar, adding that the "beneficiaries of all the decisions are these people, their families and friends".

The lawmaker further said that he has no say in the party decisions and he cannot meet the PTI founder, who is currently incarcerated in Adiala jail.

"PTI is my home and I am neither a part of any group nor will I be [in the future]," said Akbar.

Tug-of-war inside PTI 

A day after Omar Ayub quit the key party position, the PTI Parliamentary Party Friday expressed complete confidence in him and unanimously resolved that his resignation may not be accepted.

In a meeting held here at the Parliament House, the party unanimously passed a resolution and expressed complete confidence in Omar Ayub Khan as the PTI secretary general amid reports of increasing power politics, which the party denies completely.

The members rejected the resignation and also denied reports about a so-called ‘forward bloc’, adding all were united under the leadership of Imran Khan.

Nevertheless, insiders present a different picture and claim that in the parliamentary party huddle, the lawmakers openly discussed the tug-of-war and differences in the party, in the presence of Omar Ayub Khan and PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan.

They said the party’s legislators expressed concerns about the performance of the leadership in a given difficult situation, which gets more challenging with diverse views on future party cadres’ representatives. And, the latest example was the resignation of Omar Ayub, which triggered efforts to get installed a person from Punjab as the PTI secretary general.

One probable can be Sheikh Waqas Akram from Jhang to replace Omar Ayub, who hails from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa while Barrister Gohar is also from the same province.