PTI’s new Punjab coordination body triggers internal rift

ISLAMABAD: The creation of a new five-member Punjab Coordination and Monitoring Committee has prompted unease within Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf, with several party figures in the province reportedly unhappy over both the move and the names included in the body, according to a report by Dawn.

The committee was notified on Monday by PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja. According to the notification, seen by Dawn, the panel comprises Amjad Khan Niazi as convenor, along with Naeem Haider Panjotha, Shaukat Mahmood Basra, Ali Ijaz Buttar and Mehr Abdul Sattar.

The notification says the committee has been assigned to coordinate organisational affairs among Punjab’s four regions through engagement with the presidents and general secretaries of those regions. Its mandate also includes coordinating planning and preparation for all elections, monitoring the completion of party structures at every level, coordinating the activities of affiliated wings, advising regional office-bearers on organisational effectiveness, and proposing as well as overseeing political events in the province.

In addition, the body has been tasked with monitoring the welfare of prisoners and extending legal support in court cases. Under the notification signed by Raja, the committee is required to submit a weekly report on its activities to the secretary general.

However, the move has not been received warmly in party circles. Regional presidents in Punjab were not convinced by the appointments and expressed little confidence in those selected for the committee. The appointment of Amjad Khan Niazi has particularly drawn attention because he had parted ways with PTI after the events of May 9, 2023.

Internal differences

According to insiders who spoke with Dawn, the latest development comes against the backdrop of tensions between Salman Akram Raja and Firdous Shamim Naqvi. Dawn quoted a source saying that Niazi’s inclusion was unpopular among party workers and had recently led to a sharp exchange between Raja and Naqvi. "Naqvi alleged that since Raja changed the PTI leadership in Lahore, the city became dead/inactive. The very next day [i.e. Monday] Salman Akram Raja issued the notification".

The report also stated that another senior party leader said the notification was linked to a longer internal story and had widened divisions within the party. He said Dr Yasmin Rashid had initially served as president of the PTI Punjab Coordination Committee. After her arrest, Hammad Azhar was made acting president, but he later went underground after being declared a proclaimed offender.

The same leader said Imran Khan then directed that responsibility be given to Sheikh Waqas Akram and Sardar Latif Khosa. He added that after Sheikh Waqas Akram became the party’s central information secretary, the coordination committee stopped functioning.

As per Dawn, according to the leader, Imran Khan later instructed Salman Akram Raja to assign some responsibility to Aliya Hamza Malik, after which she was made chief organiser, even though, he said, that office did not previously exist. He added that the position later fell vacant after she was also convicted by a court.

The leader maintained that PTI Punjab did not require a president or chief organiser because regional presidents nominated by Imran Khan were already in place and answerable to the central leadership. He further said that a meeting was held last week attended by all four regional presidents of Punjab — Rai Hassan Nawaz, Taimur Malik, Bilal Ijaz and Ahmed Chattha — along with the opposition leader in the Punjab Assembly, Salman Akram Raja and Sheikh Waqas Akram. According to him, Raja had assured participants that a new Punjab head would be appointed after obtaining Imran Khan’s consent, but the notification was then issued unexpectedly.

Party response

When contacted by Dawn, PTI Central Information Secretary Sheikh Waqas Akram said the appointments had been made in view of the situation in Punjab. He said he hoped the coordination and monitoring committee would reach out to party leaders and workers across the province and help reorganise them.