PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi is facing a possible no-confidence move amid reported differences within the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), party leader Sher Afzal Marwat has claimed.
Speaking about the matter, Marwat said PTI founder Imran Khan had conveyed a message regarding Afridi through his lawyer Salman Safdar, asking the chief minister to step down.
According to Marwat, Imran Khan believed that leading the planned Islamabad march was beyond Afridi’s capabilities.
Marwat further claimed that Bushra Bibi’s family and Nooreen Niazi had also confirmed messages from Imran Khan regarding the KP chief minister.
He said Imran Khan had discussed Afridi and other related matters with Nooreen Niazi in the presence of Bushra Bibi and expressed strong displeasure with Afridi, Salman Akram Raja and two other individuals.
According to Marwat, Nooreen Niazi told Imran Khan that former KP chief minister Ali Amin Gandapur had formed a pressure group against Afridi.
She reportedly told him that around 35 MPAs were ready to revolt against the incumbent chief minister.
Marwat said Imran Khan asked what the lawmakers were demanding, to which Nooreen Niazi responded that they believed Afridi was unable to deliver.
He further claimed that Imran Khan agreed with the lawmakers’ criticism.
Marwat also said Imran Khan believed that even if PTI succeeded in holding the Islamabad march, Afridi’s government would not survive.
He added that there would be no pardon from Imran Khan even if the party failed to hold the march.
The claims come amid reports of internal differences within PTI over Afridi’s leadership and the party’s strategy for the Islamabad protest. A petition challenging Afridi’s election as KP chief minister is also pending before the Federal Constitutional Court, which has issued notices to the KP government and Afridi.
