ISLAMABAD - Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) that had earlier threatened to give resignations from the National Assembly as well as provincial assemblies has now given up the idea to do so and it is unlikely that the party leadership would seek resignations from its MPs, The Nation has learnt.
After realising gravity of the political stakes in the present democratic dispensation, chief of major opposition party Imran Khan is believed to have given up the option of giving enmasse resignations from the assemblies to create major constitutional crisis in the country, a key PTI leader informed.
The last core committee meeting of the party held in Islamabad had discussed the option of taking resignations from its MNAs and MPAs to be further submitted to the speakers of provincial assemblies concerned and Speaker National Assembly if the government did not open the election results of four NA constituencies for verification. "It was not a principal decision of the party but only an option was discussed among the senior leadership of the party," a source in PTI said.
The decision of PTI Chairman Imran Khan to give resignations enmasse could create serious constitutional crisis in the country as it is the second major opposition party in the National Assembly after Pakistan People's Party (PPP), the major opposition party in Punjab assembly and is the ruling party in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It might be difficult for the election commission to hold by-elections on such a number of NA and provincial assemblies seats. "PTI can erode the legitimacy of government by doing so," the senior leader indicated.
The senior PTI leader wishing not to be named explained that there were three key factors or political stakes among others that had played a key role to change the party's mind to give resignations. PTI understands that if the party separated itself from the present political dispensation, it would be difficult for it to make electoral reforms in the present electoral system through the parliament. PTI wants that electoral reforms would at least be passed from the parliament before next general elections.
The PTI leader informed that the government had given more representation to the PTI, three MNAs, in the electoral reforms committee with regard to the proportion of its representation in the National Assembly. The government on the demand of PTI also changed the text of the resolution that was passed from the Lower House of the Parliament for the formation of an electoral reforms committee and it was inserted in the resolution that the committee would look into the matters of previous election results. "So we want that at least electoral reforms would be got passed from the Parliament through the present democratic set-up," he said adding that as long as PTI will remain in the NA assembly, it would be in a good position, because of having an effective strength there to bargain with the government on key matters, including electoral reforms.
The second political stake of Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) is its provincial government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. A number of PTI MPAs from KP has condemned the decision of the senior leadership to use the option of resignations on the ground that they should keep hold on power in the province. And as the PTI provincial government has introduced a number of reforms in KP, it wants that it might continue its government to complete its reforms agenda and to use these as a slogan in the next elections, the leader said.
The third one is that if PTI will tender enmasse resignations from the present political set-up, the party that has no representation in the Upper House of the Parliament at the moment would again loose an opportunity to have its representation in the next Senate elections going to be held in March, 2015.
The sources in PTI also informed that Chaudhries of Gujrat of PML-Q also wanted from the PTI to give resignations from the assemblies as PTI being the main political party could only create a major dent in the present system by doing so. The PML-Q leadership has also offered that the party would follow the suit by giving resignations from the National Assembly, Senate and Punjab Assembly to make it a meaningful move against Sharif brothers.