ISLAMABAD: The jailed founding chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Imran Khan has said that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial assembly speaker Babar Saleem Swati ought to resign if the party’s anti-corruption committee had found him guilty of abusing his authority.
PTI leader Azam Swati said this following a meeting with Imran Khan at Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi on Tuesday. Swati, along with two other PTI officials, briefed Khan on several party matters. Khan reportedly told them that the speaker should step down if the committee had made a decision that the PA speaker had misused his authority.
Swati also revealed that Khan expressed full confidence in the party’s secretary general, Salman Akram Raja, asserting that Raja would remain loyal to PTI’s leadership and would not act against the party.
During the meeting, the delegation informed Khan about alleged corruption in Mansehra. Khan is said to have urged them to bring these issues to the committee’s attention.
PTI had previously formed a three-member committee to oversee the performance of the KP government, focusing on preventing corruption and misuse of power.
Initially, the committee consisted of former governor Shah Farman, senior lawyer Qazi Anwar, and Junaid Akbar, PTI KP president.
However, Akbar was later replaced with Brigadier (retd) Mussadiq Abbasi, who now serves as a special assistant to KP’s Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, on anti-corruption.
Swati also said that Khan ordered the immediate reversal of appointments made by PTI KP President Akbar. He added that they had informed Khan that Akbar was performing well as the party’s leader in the province.
Khan was also briefed on issues within PTI’s Punjab chapter, with Swati alleging that Aliya Hamza was facing obstacles. He also raised concerns over corruption allegations against PTI leaders Sardar Khan and Ikramullah.
Swati emphasized the need to secure Khan’s release from prison, calling it a top priority for the party.
Meanwhile, PTI Secretary General Raja said he would discuss the issues with Junaid Akbar, including complaints about the Punjab leadership. He denied reports of infighting, despite some differences within the party.
In a separate incident, PTI leaders faced a confrontation with jail officials after several were denied permission to meet Imran Khan at Adiala Jail.
Among those blocked from entry were Swati, Nadia Khattak, Mubashir Awan, Raja, Niaz Ullah Niazi, Faisal Malik, and Shoaib Shaheen. Only Swati, Khattak, and Awan were allowed to meet Khan.
Raja criticized the jail authorities for disregarding a court order that specified a list of visitors approved by Khan’s coordinator, or his legal representatives. Following a heated exchange, a few more PTI leaders were eventually granted access to meet Khan.
The incident follows a ruling by the Islamabad High Court (IHC), which reinstated visiting rights for Khan, allowing visitors every Tuesday and Thursday.
Access is restricted to those whose names are on a list provided by Salman Akram Raja. The IHC ruling, issued last week, consolidated various petitions concerning Khan’s visitation rights.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.