Imran names Gandapur for KP CM

PESHAWAR: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder chairman Imran Khan has nominated the party provincial president Ali Amin Gandapur for the position of chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Ali Amin Gandapur is a former provincial and federal minister and is considered loyal to Imran Khan.

Barrister Mohammad Ali Saif, a senior PTI leader and the party spokesman, when reached, confirmed Gandapur’s nomination for the highest slot of the province.

“We all were present at the hearing of Khan Sahib (Imran Khan) in the court on Tuesday when he announced Ali Amin Gandapur’s nomination as chief minister in the presence of journalists,” he said.

Ali Amin had first won election for the provincial assembly from his native Dera Ismail Khan district in the 2013 elections and was inducted in the cabinet.

He was made minister of revenue in the Pervez Khattak cabinet.

He had close ties with Imran and was considered one of the few influential cabinet members at that time.

In the 2018 elections, Gandapur defeated Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman and became Member of the National Assembly.

He was made federal minister for Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit-Baltistan.

The PTI has secured 84 seats in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly and doesn’t need support of any other political party in formation of the government.

Imran Khan appointed him PTI president for KP when Pervez Khattak resigned and formed his own faction within the party following the May 9 violence.

There were rumours that some of the PTI newly-elected members may not feel comfortable with Gandapur and some of them were likely to form a forward bloc against him, but two senior PTI leaders in Peshawar dispelled the impression.

“Look Gandapur is the choice of Imran Khan and if someone is opposing him, it means they are disagreeing with Khan sahib. There will be some good face in the government to facilitate Gandapur,” one of the PTI leaders opined.

Now when the party leader has nominated leader of the house, the PTI would still continue to face some challenges.

It has to join a political party in the assembly if it wants to have reserved seats.

PTI leader Barrister Saif said they were working on multiple options.

“The option we have on mind for KP is to talk to Jamaat-e-Islami as it had three seats in the assembly, though we learnt they lost their seats. If that didn’t happen, then we will form our own government,” he argued.

Barrister Saif said they didn’t initiate any negotiations with the JI but that’s their only option saying they would not talk to other political parties including JUIF, PMLN, ANP and PPP.

In the Centre, he said they have planned to talk to Majlis Wahdatul Muslimeem (MWM) and join them in the National Assembly.

“But as I stated, these are only the available options as we didn’t talk to any one of them about our future plans,” said Barrister Saif.

He said legally they can join a political party that at least has a membership in the assembly. Second, legal obligation is if that political party has applied to the Election Commission for the reserved seats before the election.

“We can join a party that fulfills these two legal obligations,” said Barrister Saif.

Arshad Aziz Malik adds: Gandapur’s nomination indicates continuation of the aggressive policy of Imran. He is known for tough stance against opposition political parties.

Around 19 cases have been registered against him across the country, in which he was also declared absconder, but according to sources, he obtained protective bail on Sunday so that he could attend his father’s funeral.

Former provincial minister Taimur Saleem Jhagra, while talking to The News, said that Gandapur is the best choice and he would focus on governance in the province and fulfill the party’s manifesto.

Earlier, various PTI groups were lobbying to make their own CM but Imran named Gandapur.

Ali Amin belongs to a politically active Gandapur tribe of Pashtuns. His father Major (retd) Aminullah Gandapur served as a caretaker cabinet member under Pervez Musharraf and died of a heart attack on February 11, 2024.

Ali Amin’s brother Faisal Amin was also elected as MPA from D I Khan in the 2018 general elections.

Ali Amin completed his early education at Saint Helens High School, D I Khan. Due to his keen interest in sports, as he was a player of squash, he shifted to Peshawar and did his matriculation from the Police Model School. He later did his BA (honor) from the Gomal University.