NEW DELHI: Incarcerated former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan, has opted out of participating in the intra-party elections.
Instead, he has nominated Barrister Gohar Khan to vie for the position of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman, leading the party into the upcoming general elections, as revealed by a senior party leader on Wednesday.Barrister Ali Zafar of PTI clarified that Imran Khan would not be partaking in the intra-party polls scheduled for December 2, as reported by Dawn.This announcement followed a recent controversy within the party when one of its senior leaders claimed that Imran Khan would not contest the intra-party polls for the chairman's role and had chosen a substitute.Addressing the media outside the Election Commission of Pakistan in Islamabad, Zafar explained that Imran Khan had been convicted in the Toshakhana case.
Despite emphasizing that failure to declare Toshakhana gifts should not lead to disqualification, Zafar expressed concerns about potential "illegal or unconstitutional" actions by the ECP that could impact the party's symbol or candidate nominations.While mentioning that Imran Khan's Toshakhana sentence was temporarily suspended, Zafar stressed that a "final decision" had not been reached.
According to Zafar, discussions with Imran and other lawyers focused on avoiding any pretext for the ECP to deny the party its bat symbol or impede candidate nominations.
Imran conveyed his desire to participate in the general elections without providing any excuse to the ECP.Zafar quoted Imran as saying, "The public is with us.
We will win the elections when they happen.
Intra-party polls hold no meaning for me.
I want that the Toshakhana case is decided as soon as possible.
When it is decided, I will contest intra-party polls as chairman." Additionally, Zafar mentioned that the former premier directed the party to conduct intra-party polls, and the decision was approved by the senior leadership, as reported by Dawn.
Imran Khan intends to refrain from participating in intra-party polls until a verdict is reached in the Toshakhana case.