PTI gears up for fresh intra-party polls

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) is gearing up for another round of intra-party elections, scheduled to take place within the next 15 days, according to party sources.

The party has already set the wheels in motion for the crucial electoral process.

Barrister Gohar Ali Khan has been designated as the chairman, while Raoof Hassan will assume the role of Chief Election Commissioner for PTI's intra-party polls.

The elections are slated to be conducted simultaneously across the country.

The development follows the recent setback experienced by PTI in the inter-party polls. The last round of such polls faced rejection by the apex court.

Previously, on February 2, a day after PTI announced the schedule for fresh inter-party polls, the party opted to postpone them until after February 8.

The decision was attributed to the commitments of members in their respective constituencies and alleged "unlawful blocking of PTI venues by the administration."

Ahead of the polls, the Supreme Court had stripped the party of its symbol, upholding the Election Commission of Pakistan's (ECP) decision to declare PTI's internal polls as "unconstitutional."

Consequently, the party lost its iconic 'bat' electoral symbol, compelling its members to contest elections as independent candidates under different symbols. Furthermore, PTI forfeited the right to reserved seats for women and minorities.

In the aftermath of the general elections on February 8, a significant number of PTI-backed independent candidates emerged victorious. However, due to the altered political landscape, the party had to forge an alliance with the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) to secure reserved seats.