PESHAWAR: Minister for higher education Kamran Khan Bangash has served a legal notice on a local leader of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf, seeking an apology from him for levelling allegation against that he sold party ticket for Peshawar mayor’s seat in the recently-held local body elections.

Arbab Mohammad Ali, a local PTI leader and nephew of Special Assistant to Prime Minister Arbab Shahzad, through a video on social media, had accused the KP Governor Shah Farman and minister for higher education Kamran Bangash of selling party ticket at Rs70 million.

He had accused Mr Bangash of receiving Rs20m for selling the party ticket Rizwan Bangash. Mr Ali had said the remaining Rs50m had gone to Mr Farman.

In the legal notice, served by Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, Mr Bangash denied the allegations levelled against him.

The notice said that allegations against Mr Bangash were mala fide and had been levelled with ulterior motives and political purposes.

It said that party tickets were awarded by a committee comprising 10 senior leaders, including the chief minister, the governor and provincial ministers, and that nine out of 10 members of the committee had recommended Rizwan Bangash for the ticket.

The notice said that Mr Arbab Ali, also a candidate for the party ticket, was not recommended even by a single member of the committee.

The notice asked the respondent to offer an unconditional apology within a week after the issuance of the legal notice for the defamatory remarks and false statements.

It said that in case of failure to do so, criminal defamation, as well as a civil suit of Rs500m, would be filed against him.

Published in Dawn, December 29th, 2021