Tariq Saeed
Peshawar
The leadership crisis in the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) led Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government Sunday deepened with the expulsion of closed aid of Party Chief Imran Khan, Mohammad Atif along with two other colleagues from the provincial cabinet of Mehmood Khan.
Mohammad Atif Khan holding the portfolio of Senior Minister for sports tourism, culture and youth affairs, Sharam Khan Tarakai in charge of the Health Ministry and Information Technology (IT) and Shakeel Ahmed minister for revenue and estate were identified as the Provincial Ministers allegedly for masterminding a forward block or pressure group against the Chief Minister Mehmood Khan.
Though the Provincial Minister for Information Shaukat Yousafzai has vehemently been denying any rift in the PTI ranks in the province, the Sunday’s notification proved there existed serious differences among the KP leadership with particular reference to reservations over the policies of CM Mehmood Khan. On the contrary, the disgruntled ministers enjoying support of several MPAs of the KP assembly have allegedly been holding secret meetings to chalk out strategy against Mehmood Khan .
Shaukat Yousafzai Sunday claimed that the leaders expelled from the KP cabinet had opposed the policies set by the government and involved in the grouping for a long time. He added the ministers had been given warnings many times and the matter was also raised before the Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Yousafzai said the government has taken the final decision today after the ministers did not accept to follow the policies. He further said the ministers were only removed from their position so far while the ruling political party will take the next decision regarding their membership later. “It is the prime responsibility of lawmakers to present among nationals for resolving their issues. We have also removed 20 people in past over the violation of party rules. The activities of the three ministers were denting the image of the ruling political party and the provincial government.” It is believed that step taken by the CM Mehmood Khan against senior members of the cabinet does not enjoy the support of Prime Minister Imran Khan who has always been a high praise for Atif Khan and considered him his closed aid. It may be recalled that following the Party decision of calling former Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Pervez Khattak to Federal cabinet last year in order to save a national assembly seat in the back drop of numbers game, Pervez Khattak was seriously aggrieved over the PTI top leadership’s decision as he wanted to retain the KP Chief Minister ship and had even threatened to quit. Sources said he had only agreed to surrender to party decision if Atif , who was the top contender of the KP CM ship, was also not appointed the CK KP.
Likewise Sharam Khan Tarakai also enjoyed the likening of Imran Khan as he stood with the PTI in thick and thin and had even merged his party Awami Jamhoori Ittehad into PTI before the 2018 general elections in in order to strengthen PTI folds. He is also said to be enjoying support of fair number of parliamentarians.
In the meanwhile the defence Minister Pervez Khattak has said that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s health, revenue and sports ministers were fired over disciplinary violation. While talking to newsmen in Noshehra Sunday Mr.Khattak also claimed There was no grouping in the province and all the ministers were united adding the “unrest” in the province was over.
