March, 12 2005	Saturday	1 Safar 1426

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PESHAWAR, March 11: Crisis in the Awami National Party deepened on Friday after two more of its provincial office-bearers resigned in protest against what they called Mr Farid Toofan’s involvement in affairs of the party.

The resignation by vice-presidents Zain Mohammed and Nek Amal Khan, two old guards associated with the nationalist party since the days of the Khudaee Khidmatgaar tehrik of Abdul Ghaffar Khan, came only a day after the first meeting of the newly-formed provincial committee.

Zain Mohammed has twice returned to the provincial assembly on the ANP ticket and has also served as provincial minister. Nek Amal Khan got elected to the provincial assembly three times.

According to party sources, both of them resigned against Mr Toofan’s interference in party affairs despite having been removed from the post of provincial general secretary following suspension of his basic membership by ANP chief Asfandyar Wali on March 2.

While Begum Nasim Wali, the provincial chief of the ANP, has expressed ignorance about the resignations, circles close to Asfandyar Wali confirmed that the two leaders had resigned.

Zahid Khan, ANP’s information secretary, confirmed that two more office-bearers had resigned and that they had sent copies of their resignations to Mr Asfandyar.

He, however, expressed ignorance about the reasons the two senior leaders had given for their decision. The provincial committee of the party held its first meeting on Thursday after Begum Nasim made appointments for four of the seven seats which had fallen vacant in the last week of February after differences surfaced between her and Mr Asfandyar.

The latest resignations put the number of provincial office-bearers who have resigned since Feb 24 at nine with Mr Toofan being the 10th official who stands removed from the post of provincial general secretary.

ANP’s central committee, which is scheduled to meet on March 16 in Rawalpindi to consider the suspension of Mr Toofan, is also likely to review the situation arising out of the resignation of nine office-bearers.

Sources close to Mr Asfandyar said the central committee might dissolve the newly formed provincial committee which, according to them had lost its elected status.

“The central committee might announce an interim set-up to look after the party affairs in the NWFP as 10 provincial offices of the party have fallen vacant,” said a senior leader close to Mr Asfandyar.

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