PTI’s Marwat calls off boycott of Sindh polls drive

In a major twist, PTI Senior Vice Chairman Sher Afzal Marwat on Tuesday said he would continue the polls campaign in Sindh – hours after he called it off claiming that he was “attacked” by party leaders Raoof Hasan and Hamid Khan.

In a post on social media platform X, Marwat wrote that he would not be distracted and urged the PTI activists to “deal [with] all the satanic forces” on their own. On Sunday, Marwat launched the PTI’s election drive in Sindh but later announced calling it off because of the statements against him by “sick-minded people” like Hamid and Hasan.

“Why these people are targeting me? Did I ever talk against them? I am so disheartened and feel so dejected. We were [supposed] to hold conventions in Sanghar and Nawabshah today but after being attacked by my own party senior lot, I am cancelling all my programmes and events,” he wrote on X.

However, earlier he had described President Arif Alvi of the PTI as a “wrong number”. In videos on social media, he had claimed that Alvi’s son had applied for a PTI ticket but he had opposed the move. Marwat maintained that Alvi had “conspired” against the party.

In response to this statement, PTI’s Hasan, while speaking to a private TV news channel a day earlier, claimed that Marwat did not reflect the party’s position and had no post within it. He added that the PTI “did not own” Marwat’s statements.

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Hasan also denied that Marwat met with PTI founding chairman Imran Khan in jail, saying that the deposed premier was only permitted to meet his legal team, sisters and wife. He claimed that no political leader of the PTI had been allowed to meet the party’s founding chairman.

Likewise, PTI’s Hamid -- in a video circulating on the social media – maintained that he did not “recognise” Marwat. He added – similar to what Hasan had said – that Marwat was not representing the party.

Hamid also ruled out internal disputes within the PTI, adding that there were two to three people estranged members, who were trying to create a conflict within the party. However, talking to the media outside Adiala Jail, PTI stalwart Barrister Gohar Ali Khan clarified that Marwat was still a part of the party.

He continued that Marwat would contest the upcoming elections from Lakki Marwat and be victorious. Gohar urged PTI members to set aside their personal differences as he announced that the finalisation of the list of candidates was just around the corner. Conceding that challenges persisted within the PTI, he described internal disagreements as an inherent aspect of the democratic process.

(With input from our News Desk in Karachi)