PESHWAR: Lawyer Gohar Ali Khan was on Saturday was elected unopposed as the new chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) after its intra-party elections were held earlier in the day.
PTI chief Imran Khan had nominated Gohar Khan to succeed him as he was unable to contest polls due to his disqualification in the Toshakhana case, The News reported.
Omar Ayub Khan was also chosen as the party’s central general secretary unopposed, party’s Chief Election Commissioner Niazullah Niazi said in Peshawar while announcing the results.
He shared that Ali Amin Gandapur and Yasmin Rashid have been chosen as the party’s provincial presidents in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab, respectively.
The PTI intra-party elections were held in line with the Election Commission of Pakistan's (ECP) orders to secure its election symbol “bat” for the general elections slated to take place in February next year, The News reported.
Speaking with journalists in Peshawar, Gohar Khan said he will take on the responsibilities of the chairman as Imran Khan's representative.
"We will take the country forward but as long as I am here, I will (act as) Imran Khan's representative who is in jail because of his principled struggle. PTI will not fight anyone, " he said.
He lamented that none of the political parties "faced this sort of elections" like the PTI did, adding that the court did not look into other parties' receiving foreign funding.
The intra-party polls hold immense importance in the country's current political climate as the party's Chairman Imran Khan, for the first time since PTI's inception, decided to hand over the chairmanship to Gohar Khan, who will be holding the party reigns until the Khan's release from jail, The News reported.
Earlier this week, PTI member and senior lawyer Ali Zafar announced Gohar's name as the party's chair, adding that his position is temporary, as Khan would return as chairman once his disqualification in the wake of the Toshakhana case is overturned.