RAWALPINDI: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader and former Prime Minister Imran Khan has directed his party members to resigned from all parliamentary committees.
According to his sister Aleema Khan. She made the announcement on Tuesday after visiting her brother at Adiala Jail. “Imran Khan has instructed all PTI lawmakers to resign from their positions in the standing committees of the National Assembly,” Aleema told reporters. She also mentioned that Imran had given specific instructions to PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar and General Secretary Salman Akram Raja regarding the upcoming by-elections. “He believes contesting in these elections would only serve as a legal justification for holding them,” she explained.
Previously, Aleema had expressed her disagreement with participating in the by-elections, stating that such a move went against Khan’s clear directives. Meanwhile, sources revealed that Raja presented the results of a political committee vote—13 members in favor, 9 opposed—leading to disagreements within the party. This division reportedly discouraged Raja, prompting him to resign from his key role, although he later clarified that Imran Khan had refused to accept his resignation.
In addition, it was reported that Imran Khan has nominated Allama Nasir Abbas, head of the Majlis Wahdat-e-Muslimeen, as opposition leader in the Senate, and Mahmood Khan Achakzai, head of the Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP), for the National Assembly opposition leadership positions.
Sources also indicated that Khan has ordered PTI to boycott the upcoming by-elections altogether.
During the meeting, Aleema shared that Imran Khan expressed concern over his wife Bushra Bibi’s health and was updated about the arrests of Shershah and Shahrez. She quoted Imran as saying that the punishments and disqualifications faced by his supporters were unprecedented in Pakistan’s history.
Shershah and Shahrez were detained over their alleged involvement in the May 9, 2023 riots, with police claiming to have video evidence linking them to the violence at Jinnah House. The FIR accused Shershah of attacking police officers during the unrest, while Shahrez’s name appeared in a supplementary investigation report later in September 2023.
Imran Khan also lamented the damage inflicted on cricket by Mohsin Naqvi, the PCB chairman, and expressed sorrow over the floods that affected Buner and other regions.
Regarding his health, Aleema clarified that Imran was in good condition but had an eye issue, for which a court petition would be filed. She added that doctors from PIMS Hospital would be consulted for his treatment.Aleema also mentioned that she and her sisters had been trying to meet Imran for three months but were initially denied permission. Fortunately, they were able to meet him today—the first such meeting in four months
