PPP stalwart Imtiaz Safdar Warriach latest to ditch party, join PTI

E-Paper | March 17, 2026

Erosion in the rank and file of the PPP in Punjab continued Friday as party stalwart Imtiaz Safdar Warraich bid adieu to Bhutto's party and joined the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI).

PTI Chairman Imran Khan welcomed Warraich into the party at a press conference at Bani Gala in Islamabad.

Warraich's switch to the PTI is the fourth major blow to the PPP’s Gujranwala division, home of the party’s central Punjab president Qamar Zaman Kaira.

Within the last one month, party stalwarts Nazar Muhammad Gondal from Mandi Bahauddin, Nawabzada Ghazanfar Ali Gul from Gujrat and Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan from Sialkot have abandoned the PPP ship. While Gul is yet to join another political party, Gondal and Dr Awan have thrown in their lot with the PTI.

PPP founding member Ghulam Mustafa Khar also joined the PTI in April this year.

Who is Imtiaz Safdar Warraich?

Born and brought up in northeastern Punjab’s Gujranwala district, Imtiaz Safdar Warraich was among the PPP’s senior members and is regarded as a veteran politician and a party stalwart.

A lawyer by profession, Warraich served as the Gujranwala District Bar Association's general secretary over 1982-1983 and was a member of the local district council from 1983-1991. He also served as the director of the Punjab Provincial Cooperative Bank Limited and was a federal minister in former premier Benazir Bhutto’s second government.

He was twice elected as an MNA, in 2002 and 2008, from NA-98, his home constituency in Gujranwala; and as MPA for the Punjab Assembly in 1993, also from a seat in the same region. After his win in 2008, Warraich served as state minister for communication.

He was also PPP’s president of Gujranwala division and appointed to the influential position of president of the party’s central Punjab chapter in 2010. His appointment as the party’s head in central Punjab was a source of disappointment for a group of PPP workers, who said Warraich could not deliver in the province, a traditional stronghold of PML-N.

Despite the trouble surrounding his term as the party’s president for central Punjab and his subsequent removal from the assignment, Warraich managed to retain his PPP ticket for the 2013 general election, once again running from NA-98 (Gujranwala-IV), but lost to PML-N's Mian Tariq Mehmood.

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Rehna Fayaz

Jun 16, 2017 05:54pm

Good for him

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waleed karachi

Jun 16, 2017 05:55pm

I am proud and content that i never voted PTI in 2013 when PTI fever was common..i am even more proud that i supported MQM in NA246 election in karachi which is the most memorable bi-election.I have been proven right.

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omair_Khan

Jun 16, 2017 06:30pm

@waleed karachi I agree. I also supported MQM then. Now I support MQM Pak.

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khan

Jun 16, 2017 06:32pm

Welcome Mr. Warraich to PTI. I do not understand why it took you so long to leave PPP. I think a person like you should have left PPP, the day Bilawal Bhutto became Chairman of the Party. I have nothing against Bilawal. He is talented young man Foreign qualified. But he knows nothing about the Politics in Pakistan. If he really wants to serve Pakistani Awam, he needs to spent time, understanding people and politics in Pakistan. Mr. Warraich will be an asset for PTI and will contribute to Party. He is a person to give something to the party not only to get something through/from the party.

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shahan

Jun 16, 2017 06:32pm

completely clean partyy, PTI is :)

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mstareen

Jun 16, 2017 06:42pm

Imran recently gave an interview where he tried to justify that he had to bring electables into party to win seats, because if he does not win seats how can he bring change. Now this clearly tells us that IK is another fraudulent type leader who is selling those concepts to the people which he does not believe are right. Because if he had faith on concepts which he was selling to common man, he did not need any electable and corrupt VC, GS he has. I personally know people hated to vote for Javed Hashmi, but they did cast their vote to him because he was holding ticket from PTI. Imran himself did not believed in himself and his ideology, people did, that's why they voted for him in 2013 but no more. The same people who voted for him have actually been witnessed as cursing themselves and their wisdom to vote for PTI.

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Hammad ansari

Jun 16, 2017 07:24pm

Best wishes Warriach sahb.

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khan

Jun 16, 2017 07:27pm

Please read this with my earlier comments. I may sound like I belong to PTI and against PPP. That will not be true. I like Imran Khan, not because he is khan but he is among the few leading figure who has done something for the country. As a player he lead the team to bring world trophy and Pakistan became World Champion. As a citizen he built Shoukat Khanum, a University.. He is the only leader clean of corruption gain no personal benefits from his position. A person like him, if come in power, will definitely do something for the masses of Pakistan. I have a suggestion tor the TV Channels to start a talk show program, it should be live. Invite these MPAs/MNAs and asked them two questions. What was their wealth/assets before and after joining the politics. What piece of legislation they have brought to the assembly floor which have benefited the masses.I am sure that you will not be able to find more than 2%. 80% of these legislatures can not spell legislature.

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alba

Jun 16, 2017 09:52pm

They will have to gear up for the 2023 election. That's not all bad.

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waleed fakhar

Jun 16, 2017 10:09pm

@omair_Khan MQM is the MQM Pak..check out the name of MQM even before 22august ,first it was Mohajir qaumi movement pakistan then it converted into Muthaida Qaumi movement Pakistan in 1997...You did not vote for MQM and MQM belongs to Altaf Bhai..That is the fact.

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Rizwan

Jun 16, 2017 10:54pm

He going to loose anyway

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Samad Chaudhry London

Jun 16, 2017 11:15pm

These party changers are most untrustworthy They are just simply opportunist seekers

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salam khan

Jun 16, 2017 11:34pm

Another opportunist and a turncoat.

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Adil306

Jun 16, 2017 11:52pm

Good for Mr.Warriach to join IK. Anyone can join the party as long as they follow the clean agenda of the party. Likewise the true politician can quit the party if he/she thinks that the leaders are working against the agenda.

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Don'T HONK, THE NATION SLEEPS

Jun 17, 2017 12:00am

PTI should exercise discretion in accepting turncoats and renegades into its fold. They may be planted by the opposing parties to sabotage PTI''s image as a clean party.

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Ayub

Jun 17, 2017 12:34am

Really the current political happening in Punjab speak a lot about our character and past history.Punjab has been in the forefront in leaving the sinking ship.We have to revise one person one vote political system for betterment of Pakistan.

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Javed

Jun 17, 2017 12:54am

Welcome, welcome... the more the merrier.

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Jalbani baloch

Jun 17, 2017 01:01am

Good for him and bad for PPP, which faces departure from loyalists due to the hijacking of party of Mr. Zardari. The people hoped that Mr. Bilawal would take over the command of PPP and would reorganize party, but unfortunately it did not happen. The policy of appeasement pursued by Mr. Zardari was not based on principles, but it was a move by Zardari to prolong his stay in power and complete tenure of five years in power. This policy of appeasement extended to Nawaz Sharif proved a complete disaster for PPP in Punjab, and soon it will become a past history in that province.

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Jalbani baloch

Jun 17, 2017 01:02am

@waleed karachi: What is the relevance of your comment to this story. MQM with London affiliation will hardly find a space to make politics in Pakistan due to its inimical activities.

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Nadeem

Jun 17, 2017 01:03am

Of course, his motives for the switch are very pure. He wants a corruption-free, egalitarian, just Pakistan. It took him a few decades to realize that Mr Zardari is the antithesis of all that. Plus of course the small matter of realizing that PPP cannot win next year. That's what made this heart-of-gold switch allegiance to the more electable lot.

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Friend of a friend

Jun 17, 2017 01:22am

Many heavy weight stalwarts from PPP have changed the chairs. More interesting changes in offing when groups of politicians from PML(N) are going to join PTI. Imran Khan must let his doors wide open, and see the miracles. Political vacuum is happening, PTI can suck all the good ones,and may have majority seats in Punjab.

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Agha Raza

Jun 17, 2017 01:38am

PTI was the hope for Pakistani now PTI becoming a garbage collector,compel to hate PTI

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Farooq khan

Jun 17, 2017 03:13am

Finally, PTI is doing something sensible. It should have done this far long ago but many will never understand. PTI shouls also plan about jobs creating projects (either for short term or long term).

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ali ahmed

Jun 17, 2017 03:32am

welcome to the PTI laundry..

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F Khan

Jun 17, 2017 04:14am

PTI mabrook. The change you promised is here.

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ARSHAD CANADA

Jun 17, 2017 09:09am

An other honest feather in Khan Sahib's cap. BY THIS RATE ALL THE GARBAGE WILL BE WITH PTI with a year.

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Nanak

Jun 17, 2017 09:30am

Nothing strange

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Aamir Latif

Jun 17, 2017 10:27am

Nor surprising, PPP is a dead horse atleast in punjab KPK or baluchistan, it's presence is only left due to leftover prominent personalities own area of influence. Despite much fun fare in last few months by both AZ and his son BBZ to revitalize PPP, one odd jalsa and TV rhetorics against PMLN or PTI, u hope they see clearly writing on the wall for ppp. Sind rural is also a matter of time as major parties had not seriously attempted to make inroads. PTI is more serious than PMLN, these waderas in sind will take no time to switch loyalties as their objectives is only to be in power. PPP should come out of its illusion and survival in the name of dead bhuttos, time has changed or else they will be history. PTI credibility of Party of clean is also dented by absorbing all these ex PPP's " dead horses", people like GM Khar has no place in current political setup. It seems IK's gamble will backfire, results of 2018 will confirm this.

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Don'T HONK, THE NATION SLEEPS

Jun 17, 2017 06:24pm

@F Khan This is no change but more of the same stuff - only sides are changed. PTI beware as this is going to tarnish your image.

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Don'T HONK, THE NATION SLEEPS

Jun 17, 2017 06:29pm

@Aamir Latif PTI should seriously review its policy of accepting the PPP remnants.

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