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Fawad Chaudhry. PHOTO: ARCHIVE
LAHORE:
Senior PTI leaders who were part of the party’s original leadership are preparing to revive the political movement under the leadership of jailed PTI founder Imran Khan, sources said on Friday.
According to insiders, prominent figures such as Fawad Chaudhry, Asad Umar, Imran Ismail, Ali Zaidi, Mahmood Moulvi and Sibtain Khan are expected to lead the initiative once they are released.
The group also plans to meet Imran Khan to formally seek his approval before launching the campaign.
Sources said the veteran leaders intend to rope in other experienced political figures from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh. “The movement will gain real momentum after the release of Shah Mahmood Qureshi, when the old guard will once again take part in active political action,” a source said.
Members of the former PTI leadership reportedly believe that the current leadership “cannot sideline” the party’s founder, stating that they will continue to operate according to Imran’s directives.
A day earlier, media reported that another dispute in the party, this time over the PTI leadership in central Punjab, had erupted on social media platform
In a revealing series of tweets on Thursday, General Secretary Salman Akram Raja lashed out at those who were “conspiring against him” and recalled that Khan had personally entrusted him with the task of conveying messages from Adiala Jail.
Although he did not elaborate on the issue at hand, a cursory look at his tweets and previous messages posted by other PTI leaders laid bare the dispute.
The controversy centers on the removal of PTI Central Punjab president Ahmad Chattha and general secretary Bilal Ejaz, who were removed following instructions allegedly conveyed by Imran Khan on October 16, when he met lawyer Gohar Ali Khan and Salman Akram Raja in Adiala jail.
Chattha was one of the men shot and wounded in Wazirabad when Imran Khan’s container was attacked during a protest in 2022.
A notification, issued on the same day by PTI’s chief organizer in Punjab, Aliya Hamza, announced Chattha’s dismissal. He was to be replaced by Ali Imtiaz Warraich.
However, after the October 16 meeting, Raja tweeted that the party founder had not ordered any change in the Punjab hierarchy in his presence, adding that they would seek confirmation of this decision from Khan in their next meeting.
