Former caretaker interior minister Sarfaraz Bugti on Monday joined the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) days after resigning from office, Aaj News reported.

“It is an honour to join the PPP. We are going to defeat the nationalistic politics which we are starting from Turbat,” he told the party’s workers' convention in Turbat where the PPP co-chairman and other leaders were also present.

He is expected to contest the provincial elections from Dera Bugti.

Earlier, reports suggested that Bugti was likely to join the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) after his resignation. The former interior minister’s resignation was reported on December 15.

According to reports, he had submitted his resignation on December 13 but was accepted by caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar two days later.

The Election Commission of Pakistan on December 15 issued the schedule for 2024’s general elections according to which the elections will take place on February 8.

The Commission will accept nomination papers from December 20 to 22. The schedule also says that the returning officers will complete the scrutiny of the papers by December 30.

Appeals to the scrutiny process will have to be filed by January 3 and will be heard by January 10. A day later on Jan 11, the ECP will issue a revised list of candidates and will give candidates another day to withdraw their papers.