Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Parties Reach Consensus for Senate Elections

PESHAWAR: An understanding has been reached between the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government and opposition parties to conduct Senate elections without contest, sources have verified. This arrangement anticipates the unopposed election of six PTI candidates and five from the opposition.

Dr. Ibadullah, the Opposition Leader in the KP Assembly, has officially acknowledged this development.

The opposition’s candidates include Talha Mehmood, Attaul Haq, Rubina Khalid, Dilawar Khan, and Niaz Ahmad. The PTI’s candidates slated for unopposed election are Murad Saeed, Faisal Javed, Mirza Afridi, Noor-ul-Haq Qadri, Azam Swati, and Rubina Naz.

Following a conclusive round of late-night discussions in the provincial capital, Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur released a video message confirming the consensus, with opposition leaders present.

The chief minister also engaged with disgruntled PTI members in an effort to alleviate their apprehensions and foster a wider consensus.

Senator Talha Mehmood, Ataul Haq Darwesh, MPA Sajjadullah, and Dr. Ibadullah from the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), among other opposition figures, were present at the meeting.

Concurrently, the opposition has resolved its internal disagreements, with the PML-N retracting its nominee to support the JUI-F’s candidate for the minority seat.

In a parallel event, CM Gandapur endorsed a summary to convene a session of the provincial assembly on July 20 and submitted it to Governor Faisal Karim Kundi.

Sources indicate that newly elected members on reserved seats for women and minorities are anticipated to be sworn in during the session.

The ruling party has resolved to form a three-member committee to address internal dissent.

In other news, PTI members Irfan Saleem, Khurram Zeeshan, and Ayesha Bano, having been denied Senate tickets, have chosen to maintain their candidacies, as revealed during a gathering of the party’s covering candidates.

The three individuals met with PTI Secretary-General Salman Akram Raja and voiced their dissatisfaction with the nomination procedure.

Sources further report that Raja is scheduled to meet with CM Gandapur later today, accompanied by the aggrieved leaders, to present their grievances.