Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan has instructed party MNA Junaid Akbar to step down from his post as chairman of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), party sources confirmed on Monday.
According to sources, Khan’s message was conveyed to the party leadership by his sister, Aleema Khan.
A written directive from the former prime minister was delivered to PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan and Secretary General Salman Akram Raja, asking Akbar to relinquish the role and focus entirely on his responsibilities within the party.
Insiders have suggested that Omar Ayub, a senior PTI figure, is likely to be nominated as the new PAC chairman to replace Akbar – who is the PTI’s president for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Commenting on the development, Akbar said he would comply with the directive whenever Khan formally asks him to resign.
“I will step down from the Public Accounts Committee chairmanship as soon as Imran Khan instructs me to,” he stated.
Meanwhile, PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja declined to comment, saying: “This is an internal party matter, and I do not wish to offer a public position at this time.
Separately, the anti-terrorism court (ATC) of Islamabad on Monday adjourned the hearing of protest and vandalism cases involving the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) founder and party workers till June 16.
Islamabad’s Anti-Terrorism Court has pushed the hearing of protest and vandalism cases against the PTI founder and several party members to June 16.
Judge Tahir Abbas Sipra presided over the hearing but could not proceed as the PTI founder was not present. The judge noted that the PTI founder’s legal position in this case is the same as in his other ongoing cases.
The cases were registered at the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) Police Station and Golra Police Station, where the PTI founder and other individuals are accused of involvement in protest-related incidents and acts of vandalism.