ISLAMABAD:
Questions are once again being raised over the growing internal differences within the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) after not a single party leader showed up at Adiala Jail to meet party founder and jailed former prime minister Imran Khan on Thursday.
The official meeting ended without any leader arriving, even though the party had sent a list of six associates (Senator Falak Naz Chitrali, Fazal Elahi, Ehtesham Khan, Sardar Ghulam Ali Asghar Khan Leghari, Syed Naseebullah Agha and Chaudhry Javed Akhtar Gujjar) to the prison authorities the previous day.
This is the second time in just two weeks that no one from the party leadership attended the meeting. Last week, heavyweights including PTI chairman Advocate Gohar Ali Khan, Sardar Latif Khosa, Babar Awan, Hamid Khan, Intizar Panjotha and Salman Akram Raja were on the list to meet Imran Khan, but no one turned up. It is also only the third such absence in the last two and a half years.
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has allowed Imran Khan to meet twice a week, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, with his family, lawyers and other associates. Despite the order, the former prime minister has been largely banned from receiving visitors for several months.
However, every week, Imran Khan’s sisters show up, regardless of whether they are allowed to meet or not. The family has become wary of the inconsistency of the PTI leadership and has accused them of not taking the work for Imran Khan’s release seriously.
Aleema Khan has openly expressed her anger against the party leadership this week. He criticized senior leaders, including Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister Sohail Afridi and lawyer Gohar, for not doing enough to secure his brother’s release and for remaining silent when strong action is needed.
Last week he also criticized the role of party leader Salman Akram Raja. Their statements have highlighted the family’s frustration with the party’s approach during this difficult time. In stark contrast, Chief Minister Afridi has stepped forward with a strong message of action on the ground.
In a video statement, Afridi stated: “President Imran Khan has given me the responsibility of preparing the street movement. God willing, I will reach Muzaffarabad on Saturday, April 25 at 2 pm where I will meet all of you at Lal Chowk.”
Afridi’s announcement comes as the PTI seeks to restart street protests. The plan is to start in Muzaffarabad and then move to other major cities, including Lahore, on May 1. The main demand remains the release of Imran Khan and stronger political resistance.
Tensions have also arisen between the PTI and Tehreek-e-Tahafuz-e-Ayin-e-Pakistan (TTAP), an opposition alliance, over overlapping plans for May 1 in Lahore. The TTAP is already scheduled to visit the city on Labor Day at the invitation of Ammar Ali Jan’s Haqooq-e-Khalq Party, while Afridi announced a PTI street movement event on the same day.
This has created a visible divide, and the TTAP has expressed concern that overlapping events could trigger a government crackdown and create confusion.
TTAP spokesperson Akhunzada Hussain told The Express PAkGazette that the matter was due to miscommunication and after meeting the PTI the other day it had been resolved. He added that both sides were expected to announce a clear position within a day or two.
