PTI’s Sohail Afridi elected KP chief minister in session marred by opposition walkout

PTI MPA Sohail Afridi on Monday was elected the new chief executive of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during an assembly session marred by the opposition’s walkout and despite prevailing uncertainty regarding the resignation of outgoing Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur.

KP Assembly Speaker Babar Saleem Swati, who pushed ahead with the election despite the opposition walkout, announced that the three opposition candidates — Maulana Lutfur Rehman of JUI-F, Sardar Shah Jehan Yousaf of the PML-N, and Arbab Zarak Khan of the PPP — all received zero votes.

Noting that three members of the assembly were out of the country, he announced that Afridi had won the election after securing 90 votes, prompting chants in favour of the PTI leader to ring out in the assembly hall.

Afridi had needed to secure at least 73 votes in the 145-strong KP Assembly to win the election. Out of a total of 53 opposition members, 51 walked out of the assembly on the call of the opposition leader; the remaining two were not present for the session.

Meanwhile, leader of the Opposition Dr Ibadullah said they did not accept Afridi as the new chief minister.

“The PTI is interpreting the law as per their understanding, we are doing it according to our understanding. There are grey areas and now the court has to decide,” he told Dawn.com, adding that the opposition would knock on the doors of the courts.

He further contended that there were now “two chief ministers” in the province as Gandapur’s resignation had not been accepted.

It should be mentioned that while Gandapur has submitted two separate resignations to Governor Faisal Karim Kundi, both have been returned over “disparate signatures”. Kundi has summoned Gandapur on October 15 (Wednesday) to settle the matter.

Speaker sends summary to governor
Separately, Speaker Swati posted on X that he had “formally sent the summary to the KP governor for [the] oath-taking”.

Have no greed for the seat, will vacate it if directed to do so: Afridi
Before announcing the results, KP Assembly Speaker Swati, in a message to Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General (DG) Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, said that “KP still holds the forces dear because soldiers are out there defending the province and continue to make sacrifices”.

Despite that, institutions can not be allowed to run parliament, he said. “The parliament is the representative jirga of the province’s people,” he added.

Afridi then proceeded to deliver an emphatic speech in which he expressed his admiration of and loyalty to party founder Imran Khan.

Speaking in the assembly, Afridi said that he was grateful to Imran for choosing someone who was a mere worker, belonged to a middle-class family and did not have familial links to politics.

“And neither Bhutto, Zardari nor Sharif are attached to my name,” he thundered. He further said that he belonged to the tribal districts and was proud of his background.

He said that a particular mindset had prevailed about tribal districts and its people over the past 78 years. “This mindset dictates that the people of tribal areas are only there to die, that tribal areas should always be far behind.”

He further said that Imran was aware of the deprivation faced by the tribal districts.

“However many times I thank [Imran], it is not enough,” he said. He further said that the tribal districts were ecstatic over the decision to field him as the new chief minister, and were thanking Imran and the party.

“As is the vision of my leader Imran, one does not become a leader by writing Sharif or Bhutto or Zardari with their name,” he said.

Afridi also extended his gratitude to Gandapur, saying that no one in the party had ever hesitated when it came to making sacrifices. “Ali bhai, the grace with which you tendered your resignation … I laud you for that.”

Calling himself a “champion of politics of protest”, he said that he had nothing to lose. “No cars, no bungalows, no riches and no greed for the seat. The day my leader tells me to vacate the seat, I will kick it to the side.”

He also said that there were reports that Imran, who is currently incarcerated, was being shifted without consultation with his family and the party. “I make this announcement, that if he is shifted without consultation, we will jam the whole country.”

During his speech, Afridi also stated that military operations were not the “solution to terrorism” and called on the federal government to engage in dialogue, and involve the people of the province and the government in devising a solution.

He recalled that he and his fellow party members had been raising alarm over terrorism for a long time, but “no one paid us any attention”.

“In fact, we were accused of lying,” he added. “And today, they are conducting operations,” he said.

Questioning the efficacy of military operations, Afridi asked, “Despite 14,000 intelligence-based operations, why has there been no decrease in terrorism?

“My people are still internally-displaced persons (IDPs), their homes have been uprooted and they are dying,” he said, noting that “it is clear that military operations are not the solution”.

He stressed that any policy concerning counter terror measures and Afghanistan had to take the people of the province into account.

“They are kicking out our Afghan brothers and sisters — people who have been here for 40-50 years,” he said while referring to the repatriation of Afghan refugees.

He also vowed to speak to the Centre about the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM), stating, “I will ask why people who are merely asking for their rights have been treated in such a way.”

PTI congratulates Afridi
Meanwhile, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan congratulated Afridi on winning the election.

“I hope the next step of taking oath takes place and the transition is completed smoothly. I pay strong tribute to the outgoing CM Ali Amin Gandapur. And I congratulate Afridi for his election,” he said.

PTI leader Omar Ayub also congratulated Afridi, saying: “Our struggle for ‘Haqeeqi Azadi’ shall continue as per the vision and instructions of PM Imran Khan. Gratitude to former CM Ali Amin Khan Gandapur sahib for his unflinching support and efforts to make the transfer of power smooth,”