Barrister Gohar Ali Khan has submitted his nomination papers for the position of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman in the upcoming intra-party polls. This follows Barrister Ali Zafar’s withdrawal from the race due to a perceived conflict of interest as Imran Khan’s legal counsel in various cases.
If elected, it would be Gohar’s second term as PTI chief, having previously held the position following intra-party polls on December 2, 2023.
The decision to hold fresh intra-party elections on March 3 comes after the Supreme Court upheld the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) plea, declaring the previous elections null and void due to administrative irregularities. The party failed to adhere to its own Constitution and the provisions of the Election Act 2017 and Election Rules 2017.
According to the election schedule issued by PTI’s Federal Election Commissioner Raoof Hasan, the deadline for candidates to submit their intention to contest the intra-party polls was February 25.
The final decision on nomination papers will be announced on February 27, with polling scheduled for March 3 at the PTI’s central office and provincial secretariats.
Apart from Gohar, other candidates including Ashraf Qureshi, Muhammad Aslam, Naveed Anjum, Dr. Yasmin Rashid, Muhammad Khan Madni, Asad Hanif, Haleem Adil Sheikh, Bakhsh Ghulam Muhammad, Dr. Munir Baloch, Syed Jafar Agha, Nawabzada Aminullah Jogizai, Dawood Shah, Syed Abdul Sadiq, Babar Murghzani, and Ali Amin Gandapur have submitted their nomination papers for various positions within the party’s organizational structure across different provinces.
The PTI’s election commission has appointed separate returning officers at the central and provincial levels to oversee the nomination process and conduct intra-party elections.
