Imran Khan directs CM Gandapur to 'continue cooperation' with security agencies

RAWALPINDI: Incarcerated Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan Saturday instructed Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur to continue cooperation with security agencies in security-related matters.

In a statement, KP government spokesperson Barrister Mohammad Ali Saif confirmed that CM Gandapur met with the party founder in Adiala Jail earlier today to seek his guidance on important political matters.

The PTI founder also directed the chief minister to continue talks for the rights of his province at the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) and other federal forums, as per the spokesperson.

Matters related to the upcoming SIFC meeting — a ‘hybrid’ civil-military forum created to attract investment from the Gulf countries — Senate elections, law and order situation in the province, and other issues were discussed in the meeting, the spokesperson added.

CM Gandapur briefed the party founder in detail on his maiden meeting with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif earlier this week, which was seen as an important political development to bring down the political temperature in the country.

After his meeting with PM Shehbaz on Wednesday, Gandpur termed his first interaction with the premier as "good and positive".

Talking to newsmen flanked by Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal and other PML-N leaders following a meeting with the premier, CM Gandapur had said that during the meeting, he stressed on the need to hold political dialogue with the PTI’s-incarcerated founder who has been behind bars since August last year in different cases, ranging from corruption to terrorism.

In the same media interaction, Gandapur said PM Shehbaz had also assured him that he would be allowed to meet the party founder in Rawalpindi’s Adiala Jail after the authorities beefed up security measures and barred ex-premier Imran from holding meetings owing to “threat alert”.

In the statement today, Barrister Saif said the law and order situation in the province also came under discussion in the meeting with Imran directing CM Gandapur "to continue cooperating with security agencies on security-related matters”.

CM Gandapur also briefed Khan about the restoration of the Sehat Card (health card) and Ramadan package in KP.

The PTI founder approved the former ruling party’s candidates for the upcoming Senate elections from KP, the spokesperson added.

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) is set to hold the Senate election next month to fill the 48 seats that fell vacant upon the expiration of the 6-year term of the incumbent senators last week.

Here is the list of PTI’s candidates from KP:

General Seats:

Murad Saeed (Covering: Azhar Mashwani)

Faisal Javed Khan

Mirza Afridi

Irfan Saleem

⁠Khurram Zeeshan

Technocrats:

Azam Swati

Irshad Hussain

Women:

Ayesha Bano

Rubina Naz