Horsetrading? JUI-F ‘expels’ Charsadda leader

Fazle Shakoor denies switching allegiance as QWP’s Sultan Khan also faces questions of loyalty

SHABQADAR: The JUI-F has apparently terminated their sitting member of provincial parliament from Charsadda, in addition to launching legal action against him, after he reportedly offered his support for a policy introduced by the ruling PTI.

The move came as the political temperature in Charsadda — the home town of Awami National Party (ANP) Chief Asfandyar Wali and Qaumi Watan Party (QWP) Chief Aftab Ahmed Sherpao — heats up ahead of the general elections next year.



At a news conference on Friday, Jamiat Ulema Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) District Amir Maulana Hashim Khan said that Fazle Shakoor, an MPA from PK-17 Charsadda-I, had been sent a show cause after Shakoor had invited Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Pervez Khattak to his Hujra. Shakoor, he said, had yet to respond to the notice.

Moreover, Shakoor allegedly helped organise a public gathering for Khattak a few months ago.

Hashim further said that Shakoor was disregarding party discipline since he had failed to attend any party function ever since his election in 2013. Moreover, when JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman and Ghafoor Haideri had addressed these functions and rallies, Shakoor was conspicuous by his absence.

Moreover, the JUI-F district amir said that Shakoor does not fly the party flag on his home and avoids identifying himself as a member of the JUI-F.

Curiously, Hashim admitted that this was characteristic of Shakoor, noting that the MPA used to disregard party discipline when he was in the ANP.

When asked about the allegations levelled against him, Shakoor refused to comment on it.

Maulana Haideri: Conspiracies against CPEC ‘will be foiled’

However, he told The Express Tribune that he had heard about his expulsion from the JUI-F and that he will formally announce his response after consulting his close friends and aides.

Asked whether he had joined the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Shakoor categorically denied switching allegiance to any party. Instead, he maintained that he would announce his plans after consultations with his aides and advisors.

Before joining the JUIF in 2013, Shakoor was a member of the ANP, having occupied a provincial assembly seat from 2008 to 2013. His father, Fazal Ghafor Khan, has been a member of the Pakistan Muslim league in the past.

Meanwhile, Shakoor’s close aides and some PTI officials believe that the MPA had unofficially joined the PTI around two years ago when he first invited the K-P chief minister to his Hujra where Khattak announced large amounts of development funds for his constituency.

They believe that Shakoor may contest the upcoming general elections on a PTI ticket, challenging the ANP chief for NA-7, moving away from the provincial assembly seat to his elder brother.

Some PTI officials believe that Shakoor may face resistance from his relative, PTI Central Vice President Fazal Muhammad Khan for the NA-7 ticket since the latter had contested the seat against Asfandayar in 2013. However, Fazal had lost out to the eventual winner, JUI-F MNA Gohar Shah.

QWP MPA in hot water

QWP MPA from PK-18 Sultan Muhammad Khan is said to have unofficially joined the PTI after he received funds from Khatak for his constituency.

Like Shakoor, Sultan, too, has not officially announced plans for joining the PTI. However, unlike the JUI-F, the QWP has yet to expel him from the party.

Meanwhile, while talking to the media in Charsadda, Sultan hailed the policies of PTI Chief Imran Khan and the K-P chief minister while openly criticising QWP leaders Sherpao and Sikandar Khan Sherpao.

Sultan said that the two QWP leaders had allocated funds to their constituencies while ignoring him as he went on to accuse them of vested interests.

Sultan, though, was coy on whether he would join the PTI. However, local PTI leaders said that Sultan was weighing his options and was consulting with PTI’s local leadership in all developmental projects.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 25^th, 2017.