NA opp leader may be notified next week

PTI chief whip meets speaker; says all legal hurdles to appointment are removed

ISLAMABAD:

The process for appointing the leader of the opposition in the National Assembly is set to begin in the next parliamentary session scheduled for January 12, NA Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq told PTI Chief Whip Amir Dogar during a meeting on Monday.

According to a statement issued by the National Assembly Secretariat, the meeting focused on the procedure for appointing the opposition leader.

Dogar presented the speaker with a certified copy of the Peshawar High Court's (PHC) dismissal of the petition filed by former opposition leader Omar Ayub and urged that the appointment process be expedited.

He emphasized that the PTI had withdrawn all pending legal cases concerning the opposition leader's seat, clearing the way for a fresh start. He said with legal hurdles resolved; there was now no obstacle to the appointment of the leader of the opposition.

The statement further said that Speaker Ayaz Sadiq assured that the process would be carried out strictly in accordance with the law and the Constitution, and that he would brief the house on the matter in the upcoming session.

"The process for the appointment of the opposition leader will be initiated afresh," he added, highlighting that the National Assembly rules governing the position are clear.

An official handout from the speaker's office noted that four letters had previously been sent to the PTI seeking clarification on issues related to the appointment.

The secretariat confirmed that the constitutional process would proceed in the upcoming session after verification of opposition members' signatures, ensuring that all procedural requirements are met.

The latest development has ended months of uncertainty surrounding the opposition leader's position, which became vacant in August 2025 when the Election Commission of Pakistan disqualified Omar Ayub following his conviction in cases related to the May 9 riots.

Imran Khan nominated Mahmood Khan Achakzai, chief of the Pashtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) and head of the grand opposition alliance, as the candidate, and the PTI formally requested his appointment in October 2025.

The delay had largely been due to pending legal petitions filed by Ayub, challenging his disqualification and related procedural matters.

Although he withdrew his Supreme Court petition in October, some cases remained pending before the PHC. The speaker's office cited these as reasons for not issuing Achakzai's formal notification, repeatedly informing opposition delegations that the matter was sub judice.

In a recent letter to Dogar, the NA Secretariat noted that while the opposition had stated in parliament that Ayub's cases were no longer sub judice, this had not been communicated in writing.

The secretariat requested confirmation of the current status of cases in which it was a party to complete the "prescribed process" for declaring the leader of the opposition.

With these legal and procedural hurdles now cleared, the PTI's nominee Mahmood Khan Achakzai is set to assume the position once the process formally begins.