KARACHI: Former military dictator-turned-politician retired General Pervez Musharraf has resigned as the chairman of his All Pakistan Muslim League (APML) party.

“Gen Musharraf has voluntarily resigned as party chairman because of his disqualification,” APML’s new chairman Dr Mohammad Amjad told Dawn on Friday evening. “He [Musharraf] has quit the party office, but he has left neither the party nor politics.”

Mr Musharraf, who is currently based in the United Arab Emirates, has been disqualified for life by the Peshawar High Court and under the election laws he cannot head a political party.

On June 14, the Supreme Court had withdrawn its interim order allowing him to file nomination papers for the general elections as he failed to appear before it des­pite an opportunity afforded to him by Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar.

Dr Amjad told a press conference that the Election Commission of Pakistan had asked the APML to elect a new chairman against the backdrop of Mr Musharraf’s disqualification and the SC’s latest order.

“We informed Gen Mush­arraf about the situation and he said he didn’t believe in forcibly sticking to the party office. He said he was voluntarily resigning from the office,” said Dr Amjad.

He said the former president resigned from the party office on June 18 and the party approved the decision in its meeting held on June 20. “The same day the central executive committee elected me and Mehreen Malik Adam as the new chairman and secretary general, respectively,” he added.

Published in Dawn, June 23rd, 2018