News
June 09 , 2023
PTI Defectors Form New Political Party in Latest Setback to Khan
By Ismail Dilawar
Lahore: A group of politicians that have quit former Prime Minister Imran Khan ’s political party announced a new group, in the latest setback for the leader confronting Pakistan’s powerful army.
Jahangir Khan Tareen, once considered the closest aide to Khan, will lead the Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party, he announced at a news conference on Thursday.
“We have to take Pakistan out of the prevailing chaos, which is destroying the country,” said Tareen. “Pakistan today needs leadership which can end political and social divisions and promote unity and harmony.”
The political crisis is unfolding as Pakistan grapples with its worst economic distress in decades with low foreign reserves, record inflation and interest rates, and a stalled aid package from the International Monetary Fund.
Khan has seen a crackdown on his political party with thousands of supporters arrested and dozens of parliament members quitting after serving a brief time in jail last month. Khan told Bloomberg News in an interview this month that the military is looking to “crush” his political party and stop it from winning national elections scheduled for later this year.
Though the military was seen as instrumental in bringing Khan to power in 2018, relations soured in late 2021 and he was ousted in a no-confidence vote in April 2022. He also accused the military of being part of a plan to remove him from power and identified a senior officer of plotting to assassinate him, allegations the generals have persistently denied. – Bloomberg
Dawn adds: Jahangir Khan Tareen, once a close aide of the PTI chief, on Thursday launched a new party, the Istehkam-i-Pakistan Party (IPP).
The former PTI leader made the announcement during a press conference in Lahore with several PTI defectors — including those who left the party in the aftermath of the May 9 incidents — by his side.
He was flanked by a one-time confidant of the PTI chief, Aleem Khan, and several others, including Imran Ismail, Ali Zaidi, Fayyazul Hasan Chohan and Amir Mehmood Kayani, who recently severed ties with PTI amid a state crackdown on it.
Tareen said on the occasion that the country was going through “delicate times”.
Elaborating on the need to form a new party, he said he had joined politics for just one purpose — to contribute to the country’s progress.
“During my long journey in politics, I got the opportunity to meet and work with several people. I learned a lot from this experience,” he said, adding that he was never a “traditional politician”.
He said he had joined the PTI as he was certain that through the party’s platform “we will be able to implement all those reforms that Pakistan needed and still need”.
“And for this reason, we worked day and night to make the PTI a full-fledged political force. People you see sitting here today, all of them were a part of this struggle,” he added. “We infused the party with newfound passion and enthusiasm after the 2013 elections.”
Tareen felt “several facts” would surface in the coming days which would show “to what extent we went to make the party stable”.
“We ensured that PTI turns into such a political force that it does not just win whenever elections are held but it also is in a position to initiate reforms in the country,” he said.
Tareen said reforms were the PTI’s basic manifesto “due to which we all had come together”.
But, he added, “unfortunately … the matters did not go the way we expected, and people were disheartened”.
He said the PTI’s manifesto was to improve the economy and relations with other countries and most importantly, ensure accountability.
“These were the slogans on the basis of which the party was formed, and people voted for the PTI,” he said, regretting that these objectives could not be achieved.
Tareen said the events of May 9 had changed the politics of Pakistan.
“I am saying this from the bottom of my heart that if the miscreants and planners of May 9 are not brought to justice, attacks on houses of political rivals will also be considered acceptable.
“And we will never let this happen,” he vowed.
Tareen said May 9 vandalism was not just about a “mob attacking public properties. “This was setting an example of a mob attacking anyone’s house and harassing our families.”
No society could allow this, he asserted. “We cannot let this situation escalate further.”
He added, “So we have gathered here today. We will collectively try to steer Pakistan … out of the quagmire. Our country needs this today. We will together heal the wounds inflicted on Pakistan….”
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