The son of slain Awami National Party (ANP) leader Haroon Bilour on Tuesday announced his resignation from the party after its leadership allegedly stepped back from its earlier decision to elect him information secretary unopposed in the upcoming intra-party elections.

Danyal Bilour, 21, was in the running for the position of ANP's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa information secretary, a position that had also been held by his father, the party's 'political heir', who was killed in a terror attack in the lead up to the 2018 General Election.

In a resignation letter sent to party leadership, Danyal claimed that the ANP "wished to have him withdraw his candidacy ─ a feat against the democratic process".

"Such behaviour on the party leadership's part, in the face of my many sacrifices for the party, has led to the decision to resign," the youth added.

Senior ANP leader Ghulam Bilour, Haroon's uncle, confirmed Danyal's resignation, saying that the youth was unhappy with party leadership.

Ghulam explained that party leadership had approached him, offering to give the slot of ANP's information secretary to Haroon's widow. He had instead suggested Danyal's name for the post.

"The party leadership agreed and provided assurances that they would elect Danyal Bilour unopposed," he claimed.

However, he said, they "took a u-turn later and asked Danyal to withdraw his nomination".

When asked about Danyal's future plans, Ghulam Bilour told DawnNewsTV that Danyal had resigned from the ANP and would consult his family before making any decision about his future in politics.

"He has not decided to join any party as yet," he concluded.

'Filling his father's shoes'

Just like his father before him, Danyal has been credited with filling his father's shoes. Dawn earlier reported that he had taken up the mantle the day his father lost his life last year, whether it came to consoling enraged party workers or being by his mother's side as she grieved for her husband.

He attained the role as head of the family in a symbolic ceremony where ANP president Asfandyar Wali Khan put a traditional cap on his head.

Danyal, who is described as bold and eloquent, has not yet attained the legal age to take part in electoral politics. He is just 21 whereas the legal age for contesting polls in Pakistan is 25.

He left his Bachelors' studies incomplete in the United Kingdom when he returned to Pakistan to be by his father's side and support him while Haroon struggled to cope with the loss of his father before him.

He also managed his father’s election bid by campaigning around Peshawar, running his father's social media pages, and canvassing for him in the election.