Islamabad: Former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan has nominated opposition alliance chief Mahmood Khan Achakzai as the new Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly.
According to sources, Khan announced interactions with visitors at Adiala Jail. He also directed further consultations regarding the Senate opposition leader slot, where PTI’s Azam Swati is considered the strongest candidate.
The development comes after PTI’s Omar Ayub lost his position as opposition leader in the National Assembly following his conviction in the May 9 cases by an Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC). He was subsequently removed from the Public Accounts Committee as well as all standing committees.
Soon after, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) issued disqualification notifications against Omar Ayub and Shibli Faraz under Article 63(1)(h) of the Constitution, which bars convicted individuals of offences involving moral turpitude from holding parliamentary seats. Both leaders have challenged the decision in the Peshawar High Court.
The ECP cited the ATC Faisalabad’s verdict, which sentenced the two leaders to prison terms of up to 10 years in connection with the May 9 violence cases. The ruling was announced just days after the ATC’s decisions in three separate cases linked to the violent protests that erupted following Imran Khan’s arrest in 2023.
