By Staff Reporter
PESHAWAR: Two ministers in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province resigned from the cabinet on Tuesday, a day after the chief minister met with the jailed founder of their embattled Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, amid reports of internal rifts and a planned government reshuffle approved by the party’s leader.
Irrigation Minister Aqibullah Khan and Education Minister Faisal Khan Tarakai, both from Swabi district, posted identical resignation letters on social media. The departures were green-lighted by PTI founder Imran Khan during his meeting with Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur at Adiala jail on Monday.
“With utmost respect, I, Faisal Khan Tarakai, hereby tender my resignation from the office of minister for elementary and secondary education, government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,” Tarakai said in his letter. He added that it had been an honour to serve in the role entrusted to him by Imran Khan and that he “remained highly indebted to him for confidence as well as for the opportunity to contribute to the transformation and uplift of the education department and system in KP.”
Tarakai said he had performed to the best of his abilities to ensure and implement Khan’s vision of transparency, efficiency and merit during his tenure as the minister, and he would remain committed to the cause and vision of the party’s founder, while reiterating his commitment to the PTI as a worker.
A PTI source told Dawn newspaper that there were rumours of the reshuffling of at least five ministers, including the two who stepped down. These rumours had been circulating for quite some time, but the resignation was still unexpected. “The chief minister had informed both Qaiser and Shahram about the de-notification of their younger siblings; however, both said the ministers would resign instead,” the source said.
The two ministers are siblings of senior party leaders. Aqibullah Khan is the brother of Asad Qaiser, a prominent PTI figure, while Faisal Khan Tarakai is the younger brother of MNA Shahram Khan Tarakai, who had served as the provincial health minister in the Mahmood Khan government.
Dawn reported that Imran Khan had approved the removal of both ministers. Gandapur had initially bristled at the prospect, saying it would further aggravate his problems. They alleged Tarakai was “ineffective, irresponsive and not fully in control of his department.”
A Tarakai House spokesperson told Dawn that Tarakai resigned because he was “not allowed to work.” “The truth is that Tarakai is a hard-working person, and when he was not allowed to work, he had no other option (but to step down),” the spokesperson added.
About Aqibullah Khan, sources claimed that his ministry was being run by his brother Asad Qaiser. Asad Qaiser, however, denied meddling in his brother’s ministry. He said that he had been to his brother’s office only once for a briefing along with other party lawmakers. “This was my only visit to my brother’s office, and there is no question of influencing or interfering with his ministry affairs.”
A senior PTI leader alleged that CM Gandapur had developed a ‘grudge’ against the ministers for their successful Swabi power show in February this year. They claimed that the chief minister was unhappy with the minister for supporting the public meeting arranged by PTI KP President Junaid Akbar Khan.
In a video message, CM Gandapur said he and Imran Khan had discussed reforms in the government almost six months ago, and he had also spoken to Asad Qaiser and Shahram Tarakai about cabinet changes. He said in the Monday meeting, the cabinet reshuffle was discussed again and he later met Faisal and Aqib to inform them about the decision. He said more changes were in the pipeline, terming them a routine affair.
The resignations come at a time of mounting speculation about divisions within PTI, which has faced significant challenges since Imran Khan’s ouster as prime minister in 2022 and his subsequent imprisonment on corruption charges he denies.
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