Mehmood Achakzai refuses to quit as opposition leader

Mehmood Achakzai refuses to quit as opposition leader

Mahmood Khan Achakzai has refused to resign as leader of the opposition in the National Assembly, despite an alleged demand from a senior Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) committee during a late-night meeting on Saturday.

According to sources, the PTI committee discussed asking Achakzai to step down during a meeting that continued until midnight. However, the opposition leader has made it clear that he will not leave the position unless Imran Khan, the PTI founder currently imprisoned at Adiala Jail, personally asks him to resign.

Speaking to close associates after a late-night meeting of his Tehreek-e-Tahafuz-e-Aain-e-Pakistan (TTAP) group on Sunday, Achakzai reportedly said he would vacate the office only if the person who nominated him for the position directed him to do so.

Achakzai, who heads the Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP), became leader of the opposition in January this year after National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq approved his appointment. Imran Khan had nominated him for the role, despite the PTI’s absence from the National Assembly as a parliamentary party.

His appointment followed a prolonged dispute over his credentials and eligibility for the office. The speaker eventually resolved the matter in Achakzai’s favour, allowing him to assume the position.

The latest disagreement comes amid growing differences within opposition ranks over political strategy and the direction of the movement against the government. Achakzai did not participate in the so-called long march led by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister last week, an event that reportedly ended with the removal of the PTI-led provincial government after 13 years in power.

Sources said PTI-backed independent members of the National Assembly had also developed serious differences over whether to launch the march and what its ultimate destination should be. These disagreements highlighted divisions within the party’s broader political camp over how to pursue its demands and mobilise support.

Achakzai’s reported refusal to resign suggests that the dispute over the opposition leadership could deepen tensions between him and sections of the PTI leadership. His position also underscores his insistence that his mandate for the office comes from Imran Khan, rather than from the party’s internal committees.

It remains unclear whether Imran Khan will directly intervene in the matter or whether the PTI leadership will pursue further discussions with Achakzai over the future of the opposition’s parliamentary leadership.