Junaid admits PTI has direct, indirect contacts with establishment

RAWALPINDI: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa President and Public Accounts Committee (PAC) Chairman Junaid Akbar Khan said on Thursday the party had both direct and indirect contacts with the establishment, and there was no shame in the interactions as institutions belong to the nation.

Speaking outside the Central Jail, Rawalpindi, he said, “If the state takes one step forward, we will take two.” He said the PTI was not in favour of resistance politics but had been forced onto the path.

He expressed frustration, noting that while there are concerns between Tehreek-e-Insaf and Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s party, the PTI was eager to address Maulana’s reservations and communicate both parties’ positions to the founder chairman Imran Khan.

Expressing reservations about the Biden administration’s role, he added that the PTI had no expectations from the US.

About the security situation in KP, Junaid Akbar warned that the province’s condition was worsening, resembling the situation in Balochistan. He said he did not hold the provincial government solely responsible for law and order situation in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, as the issues were tied to Afghan and foreign policies.

Junaid stated that PTI was not against any institution but noted that the gap between institutions and the public had widened, which he believes harms democracy.

Punjab Assembly Opposition Leader Malik Ahmad Khan Bachar also weighed in, criticising the Punjab government’s handling of PTI workers and the perceived control of Adiala Jail by the establishment. He also condemned the alleged false FIR against PTI member Aoun Abbas Bappi, who remains in police custody without legal grounds.

Earlier on Thursday, key PTI figures, including Junaid Akbar Khan, Malik Ahmad Khan Bachar, former federal minister Azam Swati, Omar Ayub Khan, Asad Qaiser, Allama Raja Nasir Abbas, and Akhunzada Hussain Yousafzai, spokesperson for Tehreek-e-Tahafuz Aaeen Pakistan, arrived at Adiala jail to meet Imran Khan. However, their request to meet him was denied.