PTI keeps "missing" Junaid Akbar as KP president

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf has retained Junaid Akbar Khan as its Khyber Pakhtunkhwa president and ruled out any change to the provincial organisation, more than a week after he disappeared from public view following the imposition of emergency and governor's rule in the province.

A notification issued by PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan and shared on his X account on Saturday said the provincial chapter would keep functioning under Akbar's presidency. Senator Noor-ul-Haq Qadri, the provincial senior vice-president, will preside over meetings of the provincial cabinet and discharge those duties in Akbar's absence, in line with the party constitution. Ali Asghar Khan, the provincial general secretary, will chair meetings if both men are unavailable, and has been authorised to convene and chair meetings of other tiers of the provincial organisation and to oversee administration, coordination and supervision across its wings. The notification said no organisational changes would be made until further orders, Geo News reported.

Akbar has not been seen publicly since October 11, when President Asif Ali Zardari approved an emergency under Article 232 and governor's rule under Article 234 on the recommendation of the federal cabinet. PTI says he was detained along with other party leaders; the authorities have not confirmed where he is. The Peshawar High Court has sought replies from the relevant authorities on petitions seeking his recovery.

The federal government cited a deteriorating security situation and what it called inadequate cooperation from the PTI-led provincial administration on counterterrorism. Former chief minister Sohail Afridi, his cabinet and advisers ceased to hold office, and executive authority passed to Governor Faisal Karim Kundi. PTI rejected the justification and has challenged the measures in court.

Parliament endorsed the move: the National Assembly and Senate backed it on October 14, and a joint sitting approved the resolution a day later by 214 votes to 56 amid opposition protests. The federal government has since set up an 11-member advisory council and a separate administrative structure for 12 districts designated as terrorism-affected, and on October 17 appointed 48 members to a Regional Representative and Development Council covering those districts after jirga consultations.

Saturday's notification followed a public dispute inside the party over the provincial leadership. According to Geo News, Secretary General Salman Akram Raja alleged that "undemocratic decision-makers" were trying to undermine internal consensus, and referred to a narrative that 68 members of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly were preparing to name a provincial president and a candidate for the next chief minister without the approval of party founder Imran Khan or the Political Committee. Former chief minister Ali Amin Gandapur challenged him to identify those he was accusing, saying: "This party belongs to Imran Khan. We do not need loyalty certificates from anyone."

Daily K2 reported that at a gathering in Peshawar on September 20, Akbar warned the government against using force against the party's planned march on Islamabad, saying PTI would "turn Islamabad into Somnath".