Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) has suffered yet another blow in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) as MPA Liaquat Khattak, brother of Defence Minister Pervez Khattak, and his nephew, former tehsil nazim Ahad Khattak have decided to join Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F), reported 24NewsHD TV channel on Wednesday.

Negotiations between the two Khattaks and the JUI-F leadership have successfully concluded and both leaders would announce their decision at a press conference in Islamabad tomorrow along with JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman. 

This is not for the first time that members of the ruling PTI have defected to the JUI-F in KP in recent times as 24News had reported on Feb 11, 2022 that Engineer Rasheed Ahmad, from Kurram district, had decided to part ways with the PTI and join the JUI-F. 

Earlier on January 30, 2022,  Ihtesham Khan, son of PTI’s chief whip in Senate Fida Khan, had joined the JUI-F. 

Ihtesham announced his decision at a function held at his residence in Malakand to which JUI-F KP Ameer Senator Maulana Ataur Rehman was specially invited. 

Ihtesham also hoisted the JUI-F flag atop his residence to mark his switching of loyalties.

Speaking on the occasion, Senator Ataur Rehman congratulated Ihtesham on joining the JUI-F, and expressed the hope that his inclusion in the party would make it more popular in Malakand. 

More and more PTI leaders started switching to JUI-F following the latter performed reasonably better in the first phase of local bodies’ (LBs) polls held in KP.

On January 14, 2022, 24News had reported that several PTI members and lawmakers were in touch with the JUI-F’s provincial high command for their possible inclusion in the party.

Reporter Sajid Baloch