ISLAMABAD   -   It seems that the difficult time for the already beleaguered Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) is not over yet as the party has been embroiled in serious infighting once again for the last couple of days.

There are widespread reports about the formation of a forward bloc within the party while jailed PTI founder Imran Khan has himself admitted to grouping among some party leaders.

The party of former prime minister Khan had remained in the headlines in the past due to internal strife but the present development comes at a time when the PTI is fighting a legal battle to secure release of its imprisoned leader and to win its parliamentary reserved seats.

The major opposition party in the centre and Punjab is also gearing up for countrywide protests demanding release of Khan and decrease in rising food and energy prices.

Last week, PTI Secretary General Omar Ayub Khan had resigned from his position following the allegations of pursuing a ‘weak political strategy’ from some of his fellows. Another diehard party MNA Junaid Akbar quit the Core Committee over his differences with the leadership while some other lawmakers are facing disciplinary action.

Amidst this infighting, some former PTI leaders have launched efforts to make a comeback but only at the cost of bringing disrepute for the party among its workers as they have opened a floodgate of criticism against the present leadership. Despite extending requests by some senior party leaders to stay calm, former information minister Fawad Chaudhry is continuing with his tirade against the leadership accusing it for having no political strategy for the release of Khan and to establish the PTI as a strong opposition party.

Many within the PTI believe that present fissures within the party would dent its ongoing efforts to make a major opposition alliance to lead an anti-government mass movement to push the powers-that-be to come on the negotiation table with it. It is crystal clear that the PTI so far has failed to establish itself as a strong opposition party since February 8 national elections – a reason that its political opponents and the establishment have not shown any soft corner for it and the party’s miseries are far from over.

The problem of the PTI is that many among the present senior cadres are posing themselves as leaders and no one is ready to hear others, a senior party leader commented wishing not to be named. He said that this power struggle would continue as long as Khan was in jail, adding that this bickering was sending negative signals among the party followers as they were not getting a synchronized message from the top tier. But he negated the impression that Khan was in jail due to weak political strategy of the present leadership, saying no scheme would work as long as the powerful establishment wanted to keep him behind the bars.

Senior political analyst Zaigham Khan sees that this infighting would have little to no effect on the party’s support base and its vote bank. “This is because all the party only stands behind Imran Khan and no one else,” he said. He added that the PTI was no more a party of electables with few exceptions and anyone was the leader who had been declared so by Khan. “Everyone within the PTI looks towards Imran Khan.”

Zaigham said that the even disturbance within the party would not dent its narrative on rigging and other matters because these were the ruling parties that were strengthening it with each passing day due to their flawed policies.