Khyber Pakhtunkhwa crisis: Differences crop up in PTI's leadership

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Serious differences have surfaced within the PTI in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan’s latest statement over the cold response of its party’s government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to the martyred Aitzaz Hassan has proved that the cricketer-turned-politician was not satisfied with the performance of provincial government and Chief Minister Pervez Khattak in particular. The latest condemnation of Imran Khan over party’s negligence has startled quite a many party workers and media personnel. However, it wasn’t an eye-popping news for those who were close to the party leadership.

It has been learnt that serious differences have surfaced within the PTI in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, leading to the formation of four groups within the party.

The four groups formed by Asad Qaiser, Pervez Khattak, Murad Saeed and Azam Swati had been at loggerheads for the past one year.

The sources also revealed that most of the important decisions in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were taken by Imran khan and his advisers including Jahangir Tareen which had worsened the matters between the central leadership and provincial government. Terming it one the biggest problems in Khyber Pakhutnkhwa, the sources said the directives were issued by people who didn’t belong to the province.

Though Pervez Khattak was appointed as the chief minister, yet most of the decisions were taken by Jahangir Tareen who had been considered the key player in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa affairs. Mainly the credit for all the reforms being taken so far goes to the PTI leaders who do not belong to Peshawar or Khyber Pakhtunkhwa instead of the local government and Pervez Khattak was not happy over this fact.

He had been voicing out his reservations over the interference of Jahangir Tareen and other party leaders in the provincial matters.

One of the journalists who is considered to be the authority over Khyber Pakhtunkhwa politics, Saleem Safi said that the party in Peshawar was divided in different groups since the May 11 general elections. Safi explained that Asad Qaiser, Pervez Khattak and incumbent MNA Murad Saeed were contesting for provincial leadership. Asad Qaiser was appointed as party’s provincial president after he bagged 60 votes, adding that three groups were formed at that time. Later, Pervez Khattak and Asad Qaiser raced for office of chief minister.

It is important to mention that Pervez Khattak was the secretary general of Sherpao group and served as federal minister before joining PTI. The sources disclosed that Pervez Khattak was still in contact with Sherpao group, adding that Imran Khan had been informed about this liaison.

Meanwhile, Pervez Khattak was becoming controversial and unpopular among the party members day by day. MNA Murad Saeed and Asad Qaiser had accused Khattak of supporting his own group including Sherpao ministers instead of PTI members in assembly. They also said that Pervez Khattak was providing funds to his group.

According to sources, the latest reaction of Imran khan was due to the feedback he was getting from Asad Qaiser and Murad Saeed. Meanwhile, Pervez Khattak camp maintained that Imran Khan and his allies don’t let them work, holding central leadership responsible for bad governance. Furthermore, the appointment of Azam Swati as PTI president in KPK added fuel to the fire as the old party workers and leaders do not trust Swati.

The party leaders protested on the appointment of Swati and didn’t even congratulate the new party president. PTI leaders including Asad Qasier and Murad Saeed also accused Azam Swati of forming a new group and bringing his own people into limelight, thus, forming the fourth group within the PTI.

Due to the formation of four groups, the political pundits explained that Imran Khan is not in a position to replace Khattak despite his incompetence nor could the PTI chief open the Pandora ’s Box. Therefore, the best available option was to get his decisions implemented through Khattak since there was also a fear of Khattak forming his own group, the pundits added. The political analysts have also said that it would have been best had Imran Khan discussed the Aitzaz Hassan’s issue with his party members instead of publicly denouncing his KPK government in media. Meanwhile, the analysts also hinted that PTI was bringing few positive reforms in the province that may help the party in resolving internal issues and rising its popularity graph in public. All things considered, the public asks-- who is responsible for the chaos. Is it Imran Khan whose party’s government is forced to wait for his directives or is it the local government who couldn’t decide the matters on which they should consult with central leadership and matters that demand immediate action. Undoubtedly, Aitzaz Hassan’s bravery was one such incident that should have been immediately taken up by the local government and Imran Khan’s reaction is reasonable and surely justified.