MARDAN: Two members of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly who were accused of selling their votes in the Senate election on Sunday vehemently denied having committed horse-trading.
Speaking at a press conference at the Mardan Press Club, lawmakers Obaidullah Mayar and Zahid Khan Durrani said that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan dishonoured them by levelling the allegations of horse-trading against them.
“We reject these allegations. In the Senate election, our candidate Ayub Afridi won his seat,” said Obaidullah Mayar while pleading innocence.
District and tehsil councils’ members and PTI workers were also present on the occasion.
Obaidullah Mayar rejected the claim that he had sold his vote, saying he hadn’t betrayed the party.
“We voted for Ayub Afridi who was the party’s candidate in Senate election,” he asserted. The MPA said he always followed party line.
Obaidullah Mayar, who belongs to a well-known family in Mayar village in Mardan, said that he was from a family which spent millions of rupees in charity so he would not sell his conscience for Rs20 or 30 million.
He added that his grandfather remained minister in 1951 when Imran Khan wasn’t even born.
Obaidullah Mayar added that before joining the PTI he had been supporting the needy people and used his money for the welfare of the people of his area.
He added that the party had the right to question him if it thought he had resorted to horse-trading before accusing him of selling vote.
“I was kept in the dark before the press conference of Imran Khan,” he added.
The PTI MPA said that the allegations had destroyed the honor of his family and political career.
Obaidullah Mayar also announced to quit the basic membership of PTI.
He added that he would soon announce his future plans.
Zahid Khan Durrani also rejected the allegation of horse-trading and announced that he would submit a petition in the Peshawar High Court to seek justice.
He termed it a conspiracy by Chief Minister Pervez Khattak, provincial ministers Mohammad Atif Khan, Shahram Khan Tarakai and some other people within the party.
Zahid Khan Durrani said he was ready to satisfy to the party and go to any extent to prove his innocence.
He added that PTI chief Imran Khan made allegations against him and later constituted a committee to conduct an inquiry and issued show-cause notice which was injustice. He added that without investigation, Imran made charges against him.
He recalled that one week back he met Pervez Khattak and Naeemul Haq and told them that he wanted to meet Imran Khan.
“Pervez Khattak and Naeemul Haq told me that there were no charges against me,” he maintained.
He alleged that family members and friends of Chief Minister Pervez Khattak were in power at different levels.
Zahid Durrani added that if Imran Khan made baseless charges against him he also had the right to ask him why the PTI voted for PPP candidate in the election for deputy chairman of the Senate.
He complained that Imran Khan disgraced him by leveling the allegations without proof.
Zahid Durrani added that he would fight to clear his name. He added that our candidate Ayub Afridi won the Senate election while the candidate of Iftikhar Ali Mashwani and Tufail Anjum, the MPAs who also belonged to Mardan, their candidate Khayal Zaman lost the Senate election.
They asked the chief minister and provincial government to resign because they had lost majority in the assembly.
It may be mentioned that PTI Chairman Imran Khan had accused 20 MPAs, including Obaidullah Mayar and Zahid Khan Durrani, of selling their votes in the Senate election.
