The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly is set to elect a new Chief Minister today (Monday), even as opposition parties announced a complete boycott of the voting process amid ongoing political uncertainty in the province.
Four contenders are vying for the province’s top office. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has nominated Sohail Afridi, JUI-F has fielded Maulana Lutfur Rehman, PML-N’s candidate is Sardar Shah Jahan Yousaf, and the PPP has put forward Arbab Zarak Khan.
Out of the 145-member provincial assembly, 93 seats are held by the government and 52 by the opposition. A total of 73 votes are needed to secure the position of Chief Minister.
Opposition decides to boycott election
The opposition parties held a meeting chaired by Leader of the Opposition Dr. Ibadullah, which was also attended by Maulana Lutfur Rehman and Akram Khan Durrani of JUI-F.
After deliberation, the opposition collectively decided to boycott the Chief Minister’s election, claiming procedural and constitutional concerns.
According to assembly sources, Speaker Babar Saleem Swati attempted to persuade the opposition to participate, but his efforts proved unsuccessful.
PTI warns against defection
Amid the political tensions, PTI KP President Junaid Akbar warned party lawmakers against defying the leadership’s directives.
“Whoever betrays the founder PTI’s nominated candidate, the people of the province will make it difficult for him to leave his house,” Akbar cautioned, adding that public accountability would follow any act of disloyalty.
Governor rejects Gandapur’s resignation
Meanwhile, Governor Faisal Karim Kundi has returned the resignation of outgoing Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, citing discrepancies in signatures on two separate letters.
In a formal note, the Governor said the resignations carried “different and dissimilar signatures” and could not be accepted until verified.
He directed Gandapur to appear personally at the Governor House on October 15 at 3 PM to confirm the resignation in accordance with constitutional procedure.
