PTI expels Farooq Bandial only hours after welcoming him following social media backlash
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The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) on Thursday welcomed Farooq Bandial to the party only to expel him a few hours later following a heavy backlash on social media directed at the new entrant's criminal past.
Farooq Bandial, who hails from Punjab's Khushab district, was handed a death sentence by a Special Military Court in 1979 for committing "armed dacoity" at the house of film actress Shabnam in Gulberg area of Lahore.
The headline of a news clipping from Dawn's edition of October 24, 1979, reads: "Five to die for dacoity at Shabnam's house". Farooq Bandial has been named in the story as one of the convicts.
Bandial had joined PTI after meeting party chairman Imran Khan earlier today. A photo is also doing rounds on social media in which Bandial can be seen standing next to the PTI chairman.
Hours after the news broke of him joining the party, however, a large number of people took to social media to criticise PTI for accepting a "convicted criminal" into the party's ranks.
According to some reports, which could not be immediately verified, the death sentences handed over to Bandial and his accomplices were later commuted by General Ziaul Haq after the accused pressured Shabnam and her family into pardoning them.
Shabnam, the poster girl of Lollywood in the 1970s, left Pakistan for her native Bangladesh in the late 1990s.
Meanwhile, some social media users claimed that Bandial was among the five men who allegedly assaulted the actress at her residence in 1978.
Following severe criticism on social media, PTI spokesman Fawad Chaudhry announced on Twitter that Khan had taken notice of the reports regarding Bandial and that a one-member committee comprising party leader Naeemul Haque would investigate the matter and present its findings to the chairman within three days.
"PTI will not compromise on ethical standards in any condition," read a statement from the spokesman.
Minutes later, Haque took to Twitter to announce that Bandial had been expelled from the party "with immediate effect".
Farooq Bandials entry into PTI was unfortunate. He has been expelled from the party with immediate effect. We have no place for people with such record in our party. He should not even be in any political party.
— Naeem ul Haque (@naeemul_haque) May 31, 2018
Terming his entry into the party "unfortunate", Haque said: "We have no place for people with such record in our party."
"He should not be in any political party," he added.
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On DawnNews
Comments (92) Closed
May 31, 2018 11:20pm
Stop these U TURNS
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May 31, 2018 11:25pm
What the core committee was doing? Are we serious about new Pakistan?
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May 31, 2018 11:30pm
In politics and in life, mistakes are made. But such mistakes shouldn't happen again. Some us believe in pti, they shouldn't tear that belief for us...
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May 31, 2018 11:34pm
PTI has 50+ more such people joined their party who have done big corruptions like Gondal brothers in the EOBI case. What about them n others like them?
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May 31, 2018 11:36pm
Don't deprive IK of his valuable friends. This is the third time. IK finds people who can help him become PM but party expells, funny.
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May 31, 2018 11:41pm
Did he contributed anything to the party's funds? Will it be returned to him or is it Halal for the party to use?
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May 31, 2018 11:41pm
So they couldn’t launder him like the rest of criminals they have in their party
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May 31, 2018 11:41pm
Bad decision and Good decision.
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May 31, 2018 11:49pm
It will be unfortunate for Pakistan if PTI comes into power. Something we will not be able to undo so quickly.
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May 31, 2018 11:50pm
Excellent choice. They both look great.
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May 31, 2018 11:51pm
IK
What are you doing.
You are ruining your and our efforts by these hasty decisions. Punjab CM and then this
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May 31, 2018 11:52pm
In few days Lot of u-turns on main highway of elections . How will Pti take speed to complete its journey with that much u-turn at the starting point. ?
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May 31, 2018 11:52pm
PTI making quick decision in recent days and then taking them back, it is time to make some changes within party.
They are exposing themselves as not mature and may not be a good fit to run the country.
I hope them govern themselves and make necessary changes within party to show maturity.
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May 31, 2018 11:54pm
More perplexing thing for me here is why Shabnam pardoned him? This victim 'pardoning' the convict thing needs to be disbanded in this day and age on urgent basis.
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May 31, 2018 11:56pm
Appreciated
And nice move
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May 31, 2018 11:56pm
I am wondering the name of the political party which has accepted him earlier.Surely he has some political career in the past,otherwise IK would not have garland him.
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May 31, 2018 11:56pm
Good that PTI is paying heed to the masses and does course correction however they should avoid doing such mistakes to save embarrassment at this absolutely critical stage.
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Jun 01, 2018 12:05am
It seems like IK has more on his plate then he can handle. With the likes of Amir and Bandial he certainly does not need enemies.
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Jun 01, 2018 12:11am
Love you IK for listening to people voice. I am sure you will not let the nation down on international forums. Well done.
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Jun 01, 2018 12:13am
Good decision by PTI.
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Jun 01, 2018 12:15am
First Manzoor Afridi, then Nasir Khosa & now Farooq Bandial owing to continuous backlashes. What is going on?. Why don't Imran think before making a decision? He has been proving the notion "Uturn Khan".
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Jun 01, 2018 12:16am
Why PTI is so immature
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Jun 01, 2018 12:17am
Another blunder by PTI...They will never learn..
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Jun 01, 2018 12:20am
Good, but little caution upfront would be prudent moving forward.
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Jun 01, 2018 12:23am
Again, old habit of PTI. Speak first, think later. No surprise.
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Jun 01, 2018 12:28am
Imran Khan wants to become the Prime Minister so bad that he is welcoming anybody in the party who he think will benefit him. It appears that PTI is no longer the party of change, rather it is looking more like a party deserters from PML and PPP.
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Jun 01, 2018 12:39am
Another uturn
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Jun 01, 2018 12:47am
No background check! Very sad at your record PTI.
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Jun 01, 2018 12:47am
another U turn and I K wants to be PM of Pakistan.
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Jun 01, 2018 12:53am
Why don't they do a background check before letting people join the PTI club like other civilized, educated, mature and smart institutions, firms, corporations, teams, parties, clubs, foundations, societies, academies, boards, associations and groups?
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Jun 01, 2018 12:59am
Whatever PTI is doing is showing its immaturity and showing that they don;t have depth in decision making.
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Jun 01, 2018 01:02am
At least PTI accepted its mistake and retreat.
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Jun 01, 2018 01:03am
Sensible u-turn
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Jun 01, 2018 01:11am
Imran Khan is looking for any electable putting aside all morals and ethics. Recently image of PTI is tarnished very rapidly and people have started doubting on capabilities of PTI.
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Jun 01, 2018 01:20am
PTI should have some mechanism to scrutinize people before accepting them in the party.
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Jun 01, 2018 01:49am
Was he associated with any other political party before joining PTI ?
People are claiming that he was part of PML (n) .. is that true or just made up?
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Jun 01, 2018 01:50am
so many U-turns. what is happening at PTI?
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Jun 01, 2018 01:53am
Well done PTI...
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Jun 01, 2018 01:58am
well done
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Jun 01, 2018 01:59am
It is unbelievable that Imran Khan is so naive that he accepted Farooq Bandyal without any background check. Such lapses don’t bring good name to any political party.
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Jun 01, 2018 02:12am
Another retreat . Imran Khan and his leaders have proved incompetence in decision making. Please wait for ten years to learn this art.
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Jun 01, 2018 02:25am
Well done
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Jun 01, 2018 02:47am
It's great that PTI realized the mistake and expelled him quickly. In future IK and other PTI leaders should be careful. Only a few days ago they withdrew the nomination for interim CM Punjab after realizing the mistake. They need to make decisions more mature way. They are relatively new in politics. As long as leadership is not corrupt, I believe maturity will come with experience, and they will perform better than seasoned corrupt parties.
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Jun 01, 2018 02:51am
Also, isn't a 'one-member committee' contradictory. A one-member committee is basically one person, where does the committee come in?
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Jun 01, 2018 03:08am
Better late than never.
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Jun 01, 2018 03:13am
Good that PTI kicked him out early.
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Jun 01, 2018 03:37am
I'm wondering how PTI will run the country?
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Jun 01, 2018 03:45am
How about research before they are allowed in. Goes to show how seriously you guys are regarding background checks.
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Jun 01, 2018 04:02am
As elections are at the brink it is appalling to see preposterous behavior of Imran Khan. His decisions and revert them back providing stock of laugh to the world. This endorses immaturity and inexperience in politics.
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Jun 01, 2018 04:03am
Naeem Ul Haq should be immediately expelled for long history of anger issues and repeated fighting incidents. There are way too many criminals and convicts within many political parties including PTI
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Jun 01, 2018 04:04am
No excuses!! He should have be vetted before joining the party. What about the other members and their past record. Do you check members record before they join PTI?.
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Jun 01, 2018 04:09am
This is call a change, good move PTI.
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Jun 01, 2018 04:29am
Thanks IK.That is why we have faith in you.
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Jun 01, 2018 04:58am
So what about the last 20 years , where Mr Farooq Bandial has been a member of PML N ? PTI did in a few hours, what Nawaz league couldn't do in 20 years
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Jun 01, 2018 05:03am
Good step by PTI by removing tainted politician from its party, thus correcting mistake of bringing in PTI.
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Jun 01, 2018 05:05am
How many more candidates with criminal records have joined PTI? Please check the back ground of all the new entrants.
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Jun 01, 2018 05:22am
Its a good sign that they accept their mistake and does not go on defending their wrongdoings. It should be appreciated and encouraged
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Jun 01, 2018 06:45am
One should also mention that before joining PTI Bandial was a member of PML(N) for over 20 years.
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Jun 01, 2018 06:57am
Expel amir liquat too
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Jun 01, 2018 07:08am
PTI lacks depth, makes off the cuff decisions, looks bad, Such behavior does not inspire faith in them.
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Jun 01, 2018 07:21am
Well done PTI team.
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Jun 01, 2018 07:52am
Two poor decisions in a row,first care taker CM Punjab and then Bandyal episode indicate lack of coordination in PTI ranks.Thanks to social media outcry that led to ouster of Bandyal from party.However, first one has left lot of bad feeling and taste.PTI is a national party now.It must weigh,evaluate and consult before making and announcing major decisions.
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Jun 01, 2018 08:05am
Here comes your naya Pakistan, If committed once its mistake if its done again and again then its intentional. First Amir liaquat and now Farooq Bandial well going PTI well going.
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Jun 01, 2018 08:33am
He was looking good in pti dupatta
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Jun 01, 2018 08:41am
Another PTI U-Turn within 2 days.
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Jun 01, 2018 08:41am
it is perplexing to know how he, a convicted being, has been able to remain unscathed all these years rather thrived on political landscape.
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Jun 01, 2018 08:54am
Good for Pakistan
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Jun 01, 2018 09:17am
Expelled for a crime which was forty odd years old and one single person was harmed but the man who is commuting crime nowadays and harming thousands mind is in the PTI.
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Jun 01, 2018 09:17am
look at the photo... is there any difference?
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Jun 01, 2018 09:32am
Social media party, if they claim that they will not compromise on ethical standards they have to expel IK.
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Jun 01, 2018 10:35am
When he was in support of PML (N) for last 5 years, nobody was shouting like this. I still feel favors of IK cuz we as a Pakistani have some hope from this guy...
Actually IK is not an offender, you can call it mistake or blunder. Culprits are those who pardoned him and sent back to this society.
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Jun 01, 2018 10:57am
This guy spent years in PMLN and PPP, nobody spoke a word. The moment he joined PTI, everybody started a campaign.......... This shows people have HOPE only with PTI that it will listen to them. And PTI showed a long-awaited gesture of really listening to people of Pakistan.
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Jun 01, 2018 11:10am
@Concerned 1 still they are far less than the other so-called parties.
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Jun 01, 2018 03:01pm
PTI needs to tread very carefully. People should not be accepted into party fold without full investigations into their past. Some may even try to join the party in order to do harm from within.
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Jun 01, 2018 07:48pm
@Dawood there is a difference between accused and convicted
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Jun 02, 2018 03:19am
Irrespective of any comment about others new entrants, it was wise to retreat rather than sticking to poor arguments which would have been needed otherwise.
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Jun 02, 2018 09:26am
PTI quick response to expel corrupt and convicted Farooq Bandial is in the best interest of the party.
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Jun 02, 2018 09:44am
@Mohsin Aziz Its only counter attack tries by our PTI friends... otherwise this person has nothing to do with PMLN
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Jun 02, 2018 10:33am
Why this criminal is not in jail? No excuse Mr Chairman PTI. You have very weak team to check your own members background. If things will not change you will face more humiliation and disturbances in your party.
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Jun 02, 2018 11:40am
PTI needs to put its house in order. It is quickly losing its credibility as a serious political party.
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Jun 02, 2018 12:37pm
Question is not to which party he belongs. Question is how easily a person who openly committed dacoity and raped a woman is accepted as a politician. A politician who will make laws to protect others from criminals. This shows how low is the moral level of the society and the political leadership of Pakistan.
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Jun 02, 2018 03:20pm
The fact that people like him can exist comfortably in one political party or the other speaks for the benignity of our system; of course it would be blasphemous to expect that no political party should allow such hooligans to be part of them because that would bring down the SYSTEM!!!
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Jun 02, 2018 04:41pm
This party is not serious and its leadership is a joke.
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Jun 02, 2018 06:35pm
Good decision.
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Jun 02, 2018 08:09pm
Correcting mistakes is not called U Turn...corrupt politicians have changed the mindset of our jahil awaaam...trying to find faults in IK...keep voting and choosing corrupt robbers thieves and murderers to rule you. Pakistanis habe become sheeps..they keep voting for the same hands who slaughter them just because they feed them temporarily...
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Jun 02, 2018 09:11pm
How about run the simple background check. Run the Google” check and search the person name before having them join the party :(
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Jun 02, 2018 11:16pm
A good face-saving decision, but, why would you tarnish in the first place.
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Jun 03, 2018 02:55am
When you play the politics with electable - You are not a game changer you are part of the dirty game
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Jun 03, 2018 07:46am
New dams should be built but not on the cost of turning crop lands into barren lands. From last seven years only a small quantity of water (Monsoon period) flowed down to Kotri Barrage to the Arabian Sea. This mean that river Indus is facing acute shortage of water on which Province of Sindh is depending for Agriculture. If any dam is constructed on the river Indus that mean that less and less water is available to Sindh Province for crop production and this would result absolute poverty among farmers of Sindh for ever as 75% areas groundwater is brackish and not fit for crop production. The prudent and sustainable way of additional water reservoirs is to build dams on the rivers where same water can be flowed into the rivers from which the dam was filled. The right and suitable site could be in the Northern areas of Pakistan.
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Jun 03, 2018 08:47am
No one has ever criticized convicted criminals joining other parties.Its only when they join PTI,that our morality is activated.
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Jun 03, 2018 10:42am
An excellent step.
PTI should maintain its high standards.
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Jun 03, 2018 11:26am
IK realized the mistake and corrected it immediately. Speaks of himself, in a positive way.
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