PTI’s Nowshera crisis

Ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Pervez Khattak is regarded as a shrewd politician, who has remained part of almost every provincial government.

He has progressed from the position of a district nazim. He served as a provincial minister before being elected as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) chief minister in 2013. After the 2018 polls, he wanted to retain the position of the CM but Prime Minister Imran Khan decided to give him the portfolio of defense minister.

Recently, Pervez’s differences with his brother, Liaquat Khattak, came to the fore. They apparently had a dispute over a party ticket which turned into a political division with Liaquat’s son – Ahad Khattak – joining the Pakistan People Party (PPP).

Liaquat Khattak – who was elected on the PTI’s ticket to the KP Assembly in 2018 and served as a minister for irrigation till February 2021 – apparently also wanted to jump ship to the PPP but stopped short of it, fearing a de-seating.

PPP chief Bilawal Bhutto Zardari welcomed Liaquat Khattak’s son to his party while PPP provincial chief Najamuddin Khan taunted Pervez Khattak that the PPP had raised its flag on his relatives’ residence.

Both the brothers are very popular in Nowshera – their native town – and they always win elections no matter which party they join. However, this time Pervez has fallen out with Liaquat, who also issued some statement which compelled the party to take disciplinary action against him.

It all started with the demise of provincial lawmaker Mian Jamshed Uddin Kakakhel, who died of coronavirus infection on June 3, 2020.

Liaquat wanted the party to give a ticket to his son on the vacant seat. However, Pervez believed that Jamshed’s son – Umer Kakakhel – deserved to be given a chance to contest the by-poll.

This was a turning point in the relationship of the two brothers.

Later, Liaquat Khattak did not field his son against the party candidate at the by-poll that was held after a long delay on February 19, 2021 but also did not offer any support to him.

As a result, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) candidate Ikhtiar Wali – who enjoyed support of the opposition parties’ alliance, the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) – won the by-election in a major setback for the PTI which has been ruling the KP since 2013.

Some sources even claimed that Liaquat Khattak secretly supported the PDM candidate. They said after the defeat of the PTI’s candidate, some people had fired guns in celebration from Liaquat’s residence.

It cannot be denied that the defeat of the PTI candidate was not only a setback for the PTI which rules the KP but also for the politics of Pervez Khattak. Apparently, the PTI’ was sure of its success as the Awami National Party (ANP) had also fielded its candidate against the PDM’s candidate.

The opposition later described the defeat of the PTI’s candidate in Nowshera by-poll as the defeat of the ruling party. Now Liaquat Khattak’s decision to join the PPP – which has been the Khattaks’ original party – has set the tone for his future politics.

Some analysts, however, suggest that Liaquat Khattak’s decision to part ways with the PTI might be a well-thought-out strategy of his brother Pervez Khattak, who, they claim, might be paving his own way to return to his former party ahead of the next general election.

There were rumors that the two brothers wanted to return to the PPP. That was the reason why the PPP decided to appoint Najamuddin as the provincial chief as Najamuddin does not want this position and can easily be replaced with one of the Khattaks at the right time, a source claimed.

Earlier, it was also rumored that Pervez was not happy with the PTI led KP government as Chief Minister Mahmood Khan had not consulted him before making some key transfers and postings.

Some supporters of Pervez Khattak allege that local administration had a role in the defeat of the PTI candidate in the by-poll. Pervez Khattak, however, held the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) responsible for the defeat of the candidate supported by him.

Nowshera is among the districts in the KP where voters also take into consideration a candidate’s family background and personality in addition to his party affiliation. That is why Nowshera has been electing people like Maualana Samiul Haq, Qazi Hussain Ahmed, Ajmal Khattak and Farhatullah Babar.

It is also a fact that the people elected by Nowshera are usually part of the ruling coalition. Political experts believe that the disagreement between the brothers has hurt not only Pervez but also the PTI.

Liaquat’s decision to throw his weight behind the PPP has not benefited the Bilawal-led party much. In the city, the PPP is still divided into three groups. However, the presence of Liaquat Khattak has strengthened the position of his long-time friend Liaquat Shabab within the PPP.

The PML-N and the ANP also claim to be gaining strength in the district. However, these parties have so far not achieved any feat except wooing back their old members.

On January 10, another of Pervez’s nephew’s Jalal Khan Khattak also announced parting ways with the ruling party during a meeting with PML-N’s provincial chief Amir Muqam.