With the elections safely concluded, the post polls period has emerged with murmurs of dissent amongst the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)’s members as an internal conflict on awarding women’s reserved seats tickets has surfaced.
Fouzia Kasuri, who organised the party’s women’s wing, raised funds for the party through several overseas visits and defended the PTI valiantly in the media, has targeted the top leadership for ignoring her in the allotment of reserved seats’ tickets.
On Saturday, PTI’s female workers held demonstrations in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) against the alleged preference for Pervez Khattak and Asad Qaisar’s close relatives in nominations for women’s reserved seats. Kasuri’s reaction is expected to add fuel to the fire and create problems for the party’s top leaders, as she enjoys tremendous popularity amongst the party’s women workers, having served two terms as women’s wing president.
A source close to Kasuri told Pakistan Today that despite her many sacrifices for the party, including her foreign nationality and career, the top leadership had denied her the primary position in its nomination for the women’s reserved seats in the National Assembly.
“More than once, Imran Khan promised Kasuri the number one slot in the women’s list and praised her for being the most dedicated woman in the party, but now he has chosen someone with questionable intelligence agencies links instead,” said the source while referring to Dr Shireen M. Mazari’s nomination, who is also the party’s incumbent information secretary.
Our source also referred to tweets exchanged between PTI Secretary General Naeem-ul-Haq and Kasuri as proof that she had been promised the number one slot by Khan: in response to Haq’s tweet which said, “Women’s Seats NA: IK (Imran Khan) committed first place to (Shireen) Mazari months ago because she is PTI’s top expert in foreign policy/defence”, Fouzia Kasuri maintained: “If this was an understanding with Mazari, then why did the chairman promise me number 1, not once but twice? “At this juncture, another PTI London Information Secretary Dr Fouzia Sadiq interceded with: “@FauziaKasuri Your contributions to PTI outweigh those of any other PTIan. May be a pressure against PTI & you would have been at No.1.”
Sadiq was referring to Dr Shireen Mazari and her daughter Imaan Hazir Mazari’s revolt just before the elections, when both issued statements against Imran Khan and the PTI and resigned from their offices. On September 25, 2012, Mazari, resigning as PTI central vice president stated, “the party’s program has been taken over by ‘big money’ and this has compromised the party elections.”
However, on March 18 Mazari rejoined the PTI.
Some PTI leaders opined that she had resigned after the PTI’s popularity graph showed a decline, returning after Imran Khan won South and central Punjab’s people during the election campaign.
Another source in the PTI said that the problem was that Khan preferred technical experts over politicians. “I have often witnessed that Khan develops a liking for technocrats and so always takes their advice. In the PTI’s top leadership meetings, he always champions the line adopted by Asad Umar, Jahangir Tareen or Shireen Mazari and does not listen to the political advice of Makhdoom Javed Hashmi or Shah Mahmood Qureshi ” a source inside the PTI said.
The source added that Umar and Mazari had influenced the party’s decisions with fatal consequences at times.
“This is what happened when the PTI could not decide on Tahirul Qadri’s protest, they failed to forge alliances before and after the polls and failed to award party tickets to the right people”, the source added.
I have been a paid PTI member for the last 3 yrs and for me this has come as shock to see Fauzia Kasuri sidelined by the party so badly. Fauzia Kasuri is the female of Imran khan, but the party has given preference to the black-mailer shireen mazari and cheater munazza hassan. If Imran himself doesn't take notice of what has been done to fauzia kasuri, I would cancel my membership with PTI, as I don't wanna waste my money and time on the party which does politics on the name of INSAF but can't give INSAF to its founding and most deserving woman leader.
AOA. it is very sad that Fauzia qusuri is not there in NA on reserved seats.she is hard working woman, attached with PTI since last 17years. why party has sidelined her.she can play an active role for the party. she was the member/partner when Imran was collecting funds for SKM hospital in the early days of of 1996…….but she was sidelined why, why???????plz clear………
Yes I agree am advocate by profession practice corporate law at Islamabad, I am member of PTi long ago. I had invited Imran Khan at my friends residence who is a barrister some more than 13 years ago. I have all support for Ms Kasuri, a really devoted worker and supporter of PTi, caution, nepotism would sink PTI popularity .
Political advice from opportunists like Qureshi and Hashmi is better ignored
she is not sidelined… You people have to understand that Merit based justice has been done… Shereen mazari is very knowlegeable in foreign policy etc… It would be good to have her in the parliament… Munaza Hassan won the elections of WW….
So they are both more deserving than fauzia ….
Fauzia may be a very nice and gentle woman… who has given a lot to the party… but PTI's goal is not to reward the worker… its goal is to change pakistan… and because of this Shireen and Munaza are the best candidates to come in the partliament….
Becasue at this time PTI desparately needs a foreign policy expert in the parliament… and also Munaza is the most popular woman in PTI as she has won the WW elections… so the justice is served… and people should respect this decision…
she is hard working … yes … she is nice.. yes… she has given sacrifices … yes.. but you hav to understand that their are more talented people than her which should be given a chance
see parvaiz khatak nomination for reserve seats
Why Fauzia Kasuri is unahppy about her not being selected or given a ticket There may be less tickets and by the time her turn came there were no tickets left in the kitty
Fauzia should have waited for t he next turn Not easy for the party i.e. PTI to given tickets to all those who built the party PTI is a successful party today and do have a very bright future. All members should keep in mind that all can not be PM or Ministers because Imran Khan when comes into power will have only 8 Ministers. Fauzia took very hasty step and will feel sorry later on. This is my opinion
Imran Khan's record about women has always been controversial ever since his playboy cricketer days.
He can't change his nature.
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