PESHAWAR, Sept 27: The organising committee of Awami National Party on Friday served show cause notice on its senior leader Senator Azam Khan Hoti for what it called levelling “baseless” allegations and using foul language against the senior leadership of the party, including Asfandyar Wali Khan.

“If Mr Hoti does not respond to the show cause notice within seven days then we will proceed further according to the party discipline,” chairman of the organising committee Bashir Ahmed Matta told Dawn.

The controversy emerged in the party on Wednesday last when a statement was issued by Azam Khan Hoti, father of former chief minister Ameer Haider Hoti and brother-in-law of Asfandyar Wali Khan, wherein he had held the party leadership responsible for the election defeat and also levelled other allegations.

Mr Matta said that Mr Hoti had spoken to media against the senior party leadership instead of discussing it on the party forum. “He (Hoti) is our friend; if he had any reservations about anyone he should have talked to office-bearers of the party,” he said.

According to a press statement issued from Bacha Khan Markaz, central office of the ANP, the show cause notice was sent to Mr Hoti’s residences in Peshawar and Mardan.

Talking against the party leadership in the media is against the party discipline, spokesman for the ANP Sadruddin Khan advocate said in the press statement. The show cause was issued to Mr Hoti to maintain party discipline, he said and added that the response to the show cause notice should be given within a week.

Further action would be taken against Mr Hoti in the light of the party discipline.

This scribe tried to contact Mr Azam Hoti, but he was not available for comments.

The controversy emerged two days ago when Mr Hoti in a press statement said that he had raised his reservations carefully in different meetings of the party expecting that party affairs might be put in the right direction. He had said in the statement that the ANP was defeated due to wrong policies of the central and provincial leadership of the party.

Concluding the statement, he had said that it was essential to not only separate Asfandyar Wali Khan from the party leadership, but also keep him away from the party affairs to save it from collapse.

Mr Hoti had also said that nobody should use foul language or level allegations against him on the basis of his statement otherwise he would disclose certain facts that would cause shame to the leadership.