Last week two major developments from Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) reignited the debate. Is former Prime Minister and PTI founder Imran Khan currently imprisoned in Adiala Jail preparing to launch another aggressive innings? On one hand Imran Khan replaced Ali Amin Gandapur with Junaid Akbar as the provincial president of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and also appointed him to head an important National Assembly committee. On the other han. Khan announced the end of the party’s negotiation process with the government. A statement attributed to Imran Khan on his X (formerly Twitter) account stated. Ali Amin Gandapur is under immense pressure as Chief Minister due to governance responsibilities. Therefore we have decided to appoint Junaid Akbar Khan a long time ally and worker as PTI’s Khyber. Pakhtunkhwa president entrusting him with organizational responsibilities. PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja also emphasized that the decision was made upon Ali Amin Gandapur’s request so that he could focus on governance and law and order issues in the province.
However analysts closely following PTI’s politics believe this move is somewhat unusual.One possible reason lies in the fact that just a day before the announcement Junaid Akbar a PTI National Assembly member was unanimously elected as Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee. The Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Omar Ayub and Senate Opposition Leader Shibli Faraz had proposed Junaid Akbar’s name for the position. Junaid Akbar known within the party for his hardline stance against the government and the establishment was given new responsibilities which quickly fueled speculation that Imran Khan is once again sending a strong message to both the government and the establishment. This perception was further strengthened by two simultaneous developments. Khan’s declaration to end negotiations and his decision to withdraw the party position from Ali Amin Gandapur. Junaid Akbar also stated in his remarks that he is committed to ensuring accountability for all.
On the 17th of this month Imran Khan and his wife. Bushra Bibi were sentenced to imprisonment and fines in the £190 million Al-Qadir Trust case. A judge inside Adiala Jail sentenced the former Prime Minister to 14 years and Bushra Bibi to 7 years in prison. Following this decision two major shifts in Imran Khan's behavior and strategy became evident. These included the announcement to end negotiations with the government and significant reshuffling of party positions. After receiving their sentences in the £190 million Al-Qadir Trust case it appears that Imran Khan has opted for an aggressive political strategy instead of pursuing reconciliation or negotiations. Shortly after the verdict Imran Khan issued a statement emphasizing that PTI would only accept a commission comprising the three senior most judges of the Supreme Court or Islamabad High Court to investigate the case. When Imran Khan appointed Junaid Akbar as the Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee Junaid clarified during a media interaction that he would ensure the committee investigates the 60 year record of the Toshakhana state gift repository to reveal who benefited from the gifts. Imran Khan also delivered a strong message to state institutions stating Do not mistake our reconciliation efforts for weakness and know that we are neither afraid nor will we back down. He further asserted. Institutions must operate within their limits as that is in everyone’s best interest. On the other hand regarding negotiations with the government committee. Imran Khan made it clear in his statement that he would not accept anything other than a commission comprising the three senior most judges of the Supreme Court or Islamabad High Court.
He stated. A commission of the three senior most judges of the Supreme Court or Islamabad High Court must be formed to determine the real culprits involved in the events of May 9 and November 26. Without this we will not accept any commission. Imran Khan condemned the raid on the house and seminary of the negotiation committee’s spokesperson Sahibzada Hamid Raza accusing the government of staging a façade of negotiations while simultaneously violating human rights. He declared. After this raid we are immediately halting the negotiation process. The raid on the home of our negotiation committee’s spokesperson and ally is an attack on our committee. No good can come from this hypocritical and malicious negotiation process. As part of his new strategy. Imran Khan first announced the termination of the ongoing negotiations with the government. Subsequently from Adiala Jail announcements were made regarding changes in organizational positions within the party and the assignment of new responsibilities. This leads to the question. Does the decision to withdraw the organizational position from Ali Amin Gandapur signify a decline in Imran Khan’s trust in him?
A grudge against Ali Amin Gandapur had been brewing for some time and some members were already aware of it. According to sources Junaid Akbar. Atif Khan and other (PTI) leaders considered close to them were previously not even allowed to meet Imran Khan. They had their grievances and claimed that Ali Amin had sidelined them. However when a flood of complaints against Ali Amin reached Imran Khan he decided to reorganize the party structure. Farzana Ali explains. Now changes will be made in PTI’s organizational structure across other regions and provinces as well. A significant aspect of this will be changes introduced in the provincial cabinet. Farzana further states. Ali Amin in one way or another wanted to bring Imran Khan out of jail but he made a few mistakes. The biggest mistake was his inability to strike a balance between his dual responsibilities.
She adds that Ali Amin’s cabinet had expanded to 33 members yet many within the party were unhappy due to their exclusion from cabinet positions. The situation worsened primarily due to the label of being aligned with the establishment that was attached to Ali Amin which complicated many matters. Senior journalist Imran Mukhtar who has closely followed Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) politics for nearly two decades believes that the reorganization initiated by Imran Khan does not indicate internal divisions within the party. Instead it is part of a new strategy by Khan. According to him such changes were necessary within PTI at this time. According to Imran Mukhtar Previously PTI’s constitution stated and it had become a tradition that no one could hold both an organizational position and a public office simultaneously. He adds that Imran Khan has not only announced new responsibilities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa but also in Punjab and other regions.
Imran Mukhtar notes that in Punjab Hammad Azhar had been absent from the political scene for quite some time and now Alia Hamza has been tasked with overseeing organizational matters in the province .He further explains. Imran Khan favors workers like Junaid Akbar and Alia Hamza because they have maintained a strong stance against the establishment and the government and have endured imprisonment. Mukhtar emphasizes. Imran Khan never allows a pause in his strategy. When the negotiation process came to a standstill he immediately revitalized the party by introducing new activities and responsibilities.
This has become a question where both sides blame each other for the stalled negotiations. On Friday. PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar spoke to the media at the Parliament House and said that they wanted to move beyond mere photo sessions in the negotiation process. He stated. As per the instructions of PTI’s founder Imran Khan we will no longer participate in any future meetings of the negotiation committee. During the press conference at Parliament House Barrister Gohar mentioned. We have a long charge sheet against us but despite that Imran Khan directed us to engage in negotiations and set two demands. The government asked for written demands which we provided. Time passed but even after the deadline the government did not announce the judicial commission. Opposition Leader Umar Ayub Khan remarked. The government’s negotiation committee can call a meeting and enjoy tea by themselves. However after these announcements PTI expressed conditional willingness to remain part of the negotiation process. Barrister Gohar said in a statement that negotiations could continue if a commission of three judges is formed. When PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja visited Imran Khan in Adiala Jail he reiterated Khan’s stance that the government was not forming a judicial commission regarding the events of May 9 and November 26 which led to their decision to withdraw from the negotiation process. However in response to journalists' questions Salman Akram Raja also showed interest in meeting with the government’s negotiation committee. On the government side Senator Irfan Siddiqui the spokesperson for the negotiation committee stated that it was never mentioned that negotiations would stop if the commission was not formed by January 28. He clarified. It was agreed that within seven working days the government committee would give a formal written response to the opposition’s demands. These working days end on January 28 and we are working diligently. e further stated that Imran Khan’s announcement to end the negotiations was an attempt to put pressure on the committee but we had already sated that we would not let external factors affect our stance. He emphasized that according to the committee’s statement after the last meeting negotiations would continue on January 28, and the government had not deviated from this position nor would any announcement be made before January 28.
One of Imran Khan's lawyers Faisal Fareed revealed that when PTI presented its demands in writing during the last meeting government ministers responded with a press conference clearly stating that a commission could not be formed regarding ongoing cases. According to Faisal Fareed. On one hand government leaders and ministers are mocking the negotiation process and on the other hand they claim they are ready to consider the demands. He accused the government of never wanting the truth about the events of May 9 and November 26 to come to light. Faisal Fareed also pointed out that during the negotiation process the government had failed to facilitate a meeting between PTI party leaders and Imran Khan despite making serious claims. He further mentioned that during the negotiations an important member of the negotiation committee Hamid Raza had his seminary raided and was unlawfully detained. Irfan Siddiqui a government representative responded that when PTI's leader made an announcement the PTI members were compelled to make the same declaration outside Adiala Jail. Journalist Imran Mukhtar noted that it seems PTI still leans toward negotiations. He mentioned that the statement PTI leaders will make after their meeting with Imran Khan will be important. He also stated that there is a possibility of a round of negotiations between the government and PTI on January 28. Farzana Ali observed that while the negotiation process may appear stalled on the surface negotiations are still ongoing behind the scenes as confirmed by PTI leaders themselves.
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