MULTAN City News

‘Pathan lobby’ out to marginalise Qureshi
From Nadeem Shah
MULTAN: Differences have emerged in the Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf as a powerful ‘Pathan lobby’ is making efforts to sideline another Makhdoom in the party for its ‘vested interests’, The News learnt on Thursday.
Sources said that differences stared appearing in the PTI when party vice-chairman Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Qureshi visited the residence of Imran Khan in Islamabad to meet him some days ago, but he ‘refused’, saying that he was busy in domestic affairs. They said that Imran Khan’s response disappointed Qureshi. They said that Qureshi was in trouble for two reasons. Firstly, he secretly held a meeting with a western ambassador in Islamabad and discussed the party politics with him without taking the party chief and the core committee into confidence and secondly he opposed to Imran Khan’s second marriage, the sources added.
They said that 10 members of the PTI core committee influenced by Khan’s family and led by Shah Mehmood Qureshi met Imran Khan and asked him not to contract second marriage, which Imran Khan did not like. Later, Reham Khan also came to know about it, they added.
They said that differences became serious since Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar joined the PTI. They said that PTI secretary general Jehangir Khan Tareen played a key role in motivating Punjab former governor Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar to join the PTI, which gave more leverage to him (Tareen) in Punjab party affairs as compared to Shah Mehmood.
They said that Tareen wanted to get Chaudhry Sarwar elected as the PTI president in the intra-party elections as the post had been vacant since the resignation of Makhdoom Javed Hashmi.
They said that Imran Khan had acknowledged Jehangir Tareen’s efforts regarding joining of the PTI by Chaudhry Sarwar. The political developments had brought the Pathan lobby close to Imran Khan than Shah Mehmood, the sources added. They said that the PTI was giving importance to Chaudhry Sarwar because he had revolted and could dent the PML-N.
They said that Chaudhry Sarwar could be helpful in influencing the PML-N legislators belonging to Arian clan to join the PTI. Punjab former minister Abdul Waheed Arian, who was recently disqualified on the charge of having dual CNICs, was a relative of Chaudhry Sarwar, they added. They said that Shah Mehmood Qureshi had also made efforts and played a key role in influencing the local politicians to join the PTI, but his efforts dented former PM Yusuf Raza Gilani in local politics only.
When contacted, PTI vice-chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi did not attend his mobile phone despite repeated attempts. However, a PTI National Council member rejected differences, saying that PTI chairman Imran Khan had good relations with Shah Mehmood Qureshi. He also rejected the existence of Pathan lobby in the party.
Meanwhile, in a text message to the correspondent, Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf secretary information Shireen Mazari said that PTI chairman Imran Khan was aware of party vice-chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi’s meetings with foreign diplomats. She said that Imran Khan had asked Shah Mehmood and other stalwarts to meet the foreign diplomats. She said that there were no differences among the party leaders and these were only rumours.