Shafaqna Pakistan: Senior jailed leaders of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Thursday urged the party leadership to contest the upcoming Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) elections, calling for PTI-backed candidates to be fielded despite the legal uncertainty surrounding the party’s status.
According to party sources, imprisoned leaders, including Dr Yasmin Rashid and Shah Mahmood Qureshi, sent a letter to the party chairman and secretary general, urging the leadership to remain part of the electoral process.
The message was conveyed through the leaders’ legal counsel.
Sources said the letter stated that the jailed PTI leaders had held consultations on the AJK elections before reaching a consensus on the matter.
“We have consulted on the Azad Kashmir elections and have reached the conclusion,” the letter states.
“We have decided that PTI-supported candidates should participate in the electoral process,” it adds.
The letter further urges the party to publicly announce the names of all candidates who would contest the elections with PTI’s backing.
“The party should publish the names of all those candidates who will be its supported candidates,” the letter says.
The appeal comes as PTI announced that it would not participate in the AJK elections under the prevailing political circumstances, saying it would stay away from the electoral process until normalcy was restored in the region.
Source: Express Tribune
