Jahangir Tareen decides to form political party

LAHORE: After remaining out of the scene, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s estranged leader Jahangir Khan Tareen has decided to form a new national-level political party, sources privy to the development told Geo News on Friday.

According to the sources, PTI leaders upset with the party are also expected to join the new setup. Apart from those, many political families from Dera Ghazi Khan, Rajanpur, Muzzafargarh, Lodhran and Multan are expected to join hands with Tareen.

The sources claimed that many “important leaders” from Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan have also contacted the former PTI leader.

Sources shared that Tareen will be patron-in-chief of the party.

Tareen was the secretary general of the PTI before he was ousted from politics in 2017 after the Supreme Court disqualified him for being “dishonest” on a petition filed by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Hanif Abbasi.

Abbasi had approached the Supreme Court seeking the disqualification of PTI Chairman Imran Khan and Tareen.

However, despite the disqualification, Tareen remained a part of PTI and was crucial in wooing independent lawmakers to join the Imran Khan-led party after the 2018 elections. His efforts proved critical as they helped Khan secure the prime ministership in 2018.

But after coming to power, Tareen and PTI leader Aleem Khan’s relationship with the PTI turned sour.

In May 2022, the former prime minister revealed the reason behind his differences with both leaders and said that both were seeking “illegal benefits from him.”

Speaking during a podcast, Khan claimed that differences with both estranged leaders developed when he refused to entertain their requests.

“Aleem Khan expected me to legalise his 300-acre land near Ravi,” Khan said, adding “from then onwards, I developed differences with him.”

While talking about Tareen, Khan said: “Tareen stood with those who are the biggest dacoits in the country. When I ordered a probe into the matter [sugar scandal], differences developed with Tareen.”

After being sidelined, both Aleem and Tareen remained quiet but came under the spotlight after the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) moved the vote of no-confidence motion against Imran Khan in April of last year. The move eventually led to the ouster of Khan from the premiership.

However, during the no-confidence motion, a group of PTI dissidents emerged that supported Tareen. Among those is Opposition Leader in the National Assembly Raja Riaz.

Interestingly, rumours of Tareen forming a new party have been rife since last year. In January this year, it was reported that Aleem and Tareen along with other PTI dissidents were planning to launch a new party.

In March of this year, it was reported that the splinter group named “Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Nazriyati (PTIN) or Haqeeqi Tehreek-e-Insaf (HTI)” would be formed to contest the upcoming elections.

Members of the Jahangir Khan Tareen (JKT) Group put forth a proposal during an Iftar dinner which was attended by several members of the dissident PTI groups and leaders, including Raja Riaz and Awn Chaudhry.

Moreover, ever since the clampdown on PTI after the May 9 protests that were held following Imran Khan’s arrest, many leaders have parted ways with the party. A faction called the PTI Haqiqi was formed a day earlier by Rao Yasir, who previously served as PTI Multan district Youth Wing president.