Pervez Khattak likely to join PPP

NOWSHERA: After suffering a crushing defeat in the February 8 general election, former defence minister Pervez Khattak, has started making efforts to join the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), it was learnt.

Sources close to Pervez Khattak said that he was considering joining the PPP even though he had announced quitting politics after his defeat in the last general election.

Pervez Khattak had formed Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Parliamentarians (PTIP) after parting ways with former prime minister Imran Khan in the aftermath of the May 9 violence.

He would bitterly criticize his former political boss and was not tired of claiming to become the chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after winning the general election.

However, he and his newly formed political party had to face a crushing defeat.

His nascent PTIP could only get two seats in the polls.

Pervez Khattak, his two sons and a son-in-law were defeated by the PTI-backed candidates. He had gone into political hibernation after his defeat.

The sources said that Pervez Khattak was told that his joining the party would be conditional upon the permission of the office-bearers of the PPP Nowshera chapter.

Pervez Khattak has started approaching the PPP Nowshera office-bearers to win them over.

The PPP Nowshera chapter office-bearers had told a gathering, which was held in connection with the death anniversary of party’s founding chairman Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, that they would welcome whoever wanted to join their ranks under the leadership of PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari.

They had said that the PPP was a political party and believed in promoting political values. Pervez Khattak held meetings with his supporters on the occasion of the Eidul Fitr to prevail upon them to join the PPP.

He had cut off contacts with his workers and supporters after the electoral defeat.

His family sources said that Pervez Khattak had started making efforts to win over his brother Liaqat Khattak, who had joined the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl after developing differences with him.

The sources said that the differences between the two brothers had benefited their political rivals so they should patch things up with each other. Pervez Khattak, sources said, had got in touch with the senior PPP leadership, including Raja Pervez Ashraf, Syed Khursheed Shah and others.

However, the senior PPP leadership made it clear to Pervez Khattak that the party would take the PPP Nowshera chapter office-bearers into confidence before allowing him to join the party.

When contacted, PPP local leader Ilyas Khan said that Syed Khursheed Shah had contacted PPP Nowshera general secretary Saeedullah to take him into confidence about this development.

He said that Khursheed Shah directed Saeedullah to arrange a meeting of the PPP Nowshera office-bearers with Pervez Khattak and if they were willing then things would be finalized.

Ilyas Khan said Nowshera PPP office-bearers attended an iftar dinner hosted by Pervez Khattak in Islamabad.

The Nowshera PPP office-bearers sought some time from Pervez Khattak so that they would persuade the widow of late PPP leader from Nowshera Liaqat Shabab. Pervez Khattak had differences with Liaqat Shabab. To a question about appointing Pervez Khattak as governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Ilyas Khan said that it was up to President Asif Ali Zardari and PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari to make a decision. However, he said that no such decision had been made.