PESHAWAR: Awami Jamhoori Ittehad Pakistan is likely to merge into Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf before the Senate elections, to be held on March 5, according to sources.

“Imran Khan has awarded ticket to Mr Tarakai on the condition that he will announce merger of his AJIP with PTI. There’s already resentment among the PTI lawmakers about the provincial government and if Tarakai backtracks, it will heighten tension among the PTI ranks,” said a PTI leader.

Take a look: Property tycoon ‘invests’ in Senate elections

Shahram Khan Tarakai, senior provincial minister and chairman of AJIP, told Dawn it was premature to say that his party was being merged with PTI.

AJIP leader says both the parties have similar manifestos and programmes

“We have the same manifesto and programme as PTI has. We took part in PTI’s sit-in in Islamabad and backed its stand regarding election rigging, provincial rights and other matters,” he said.

The AJIP leader said that it was the desire of Imran Khan to field his father (Liaquat Khan Tarakai) as PTI’s candidate in the Senate elections from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. “We have welcomed the confidence shown in AJIP. Like PTI, we also want to perform and bring change and get in place an independent election commission and free judiciary,” he said.

However, sources insist that AJIP will be merged into PTI as pledged by its leader before being allotted ticket. PTI, which rules Khyber Pakhtunkhwa along with Jamaat-i-Islami and AJIP, faces staunch challenge from its own MPAs, especially those who belong to Swat and southern districts where the party has a strong vote bank but have been neglected.

They also pointed out that Usman Khan Tarakai, uncle of Sharam Tarakai, was supporter of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz in the National Assembly and Liaquat Khan Tarakai could go his brother’s way after elections.

“The main point is that AJIP has been getting more than its share in the coalition government. It has five members in the 124-member house and giving it a Senate seat could escalate the prevalent tension in PTI,” they said. They added that there was no doubt about AJI’s merger into PTI and it was now a matter of time.

Most of the PTI lawmakers had serious reservation over allotting the portfolio of health to Shahram Khan in the provincial cabinet and now a Senate ticket to his father rubbed salt on their wounds. “If Mr Tarakai doesn’t announce merger, there is likelihood that many PTI members may not vote for him,” sources said.

They said that PTI leadership also acknowledged the support given to it by AJIP during its D-Chowk Dharna but it wanted its immediate merger to preempt fissures in the party.

MNA Eng Humidul Haq told Dawn that Imran Khan was concerned that it would cause harm to PTI if AJIP didn’t merge into it. “There’s resentment in the party ranks over Senate ticket to AJIP because the party’s own people have been suffered. There’s no development in areas from where PTI emerged victorious with big margin,” he said.

The MNA said that they couldn’t afford to allot ticket to AJIP’s person at the cost of PTI candidates and therefore wanted immediate merger of AJIP into PTI.

“This is what, Imran Khan knows. He is also waiting for the merger announcement by AJI at the earliest,” he added.

Published in Dawn, February 23rd, 2015

On a mobile phone? Get the Dawn Mobile App: Apple Store | Google Play