PPP Central Information Secretary Faisal Karim Kundi on Tuesday asserted that opposition parties in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa would spring a “surprise” in the upcoming Senate elections.

He made the remarks while addressing a press conference in Islamabad with PPP General Secretary Nayyer Bukhari and former Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) senator Talha Mahmood — who announced that he would be joining the party.

“As soon as the oath (on reserved seats) is taken, opposition parties in KP will give a surprise in the Senate elections,” Kundi said.

The PPP leader also criticised the KP government for employing “delaying tactics” in the oath-taking of MPAs on reserved seats. Noting that the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) had been denied reserved seats by the Peshawar High Court, he said the PPP wanted the oath-taking to take place as soon as possible.

He said the PTI-SIC was afraid that “they would lose many Senate seats” if oaths were administered to women and minorities on reserved seats.

The PPP leader stated that the PTI-SIC was violating the Constitution and law, urging KP Assembly Speaker Babar Saleem Swati to fulfil his constitutional role.

Kundi further said there were reports of a “forward bloc” within the PTI-SIC in Punjab and that there were also rumours of the same happening in KP.

“I am also hearing such voices in KP that there there may soon be a press conference, and a forward bloc may be announced,” he said. Kundi further said that “more friends from KP” were in contact with the party and would join it.

JUI-F’s Talha Mahmood joins PPP

Meanwhile, former JUI-F senator Mahmood announced in the same press conference that he was joining the PPP.

“In my opinion, Pakistan right now immensely needs […] that I do some work on the national level. And on the national level, I think there is no other party other than the PPP in the current circumstances.

“Therefore, I have decided […] I have joined the PPP and they have shown me respect. The PPP’s history is that they have stood by in difficult times and tried to play their role in improving Pakistan’s situation,” he added.

Mahmood said that the PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari had invited him to join his party. The former religious affairs minister added President Asif Ali Zardari also held a “detailed meeting” with him a week ago and invited him to join the PPP.

Recalling that he had been a part of the JUI-F ever since he joined politics, Mahmood highlighted that Pakistan currently faced “various” challenges.

The former senator, whose tenure ended earlier this month, recalled that he had also served as the chairman of the Senate committees on finance and interior.

“In the past 18 years, I did not seek any privileges from the government of Pakistan. Neither did I take any salary nor any other kind of privilege,” he said.

Bukhari welcomed Mahmood to the party, saying, “We all, on our behalf and the party’s, welcome Talha Mahmood sahib into the PPP.

“You expressed trust in the party leadership [and] considered the PPP a party that can steer the country out of the crises under current circumstances,” he said.

Highlighting Mahmood’s role as a senator from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Bukhari said, “We hope that his role in the PPP will be very positive as well.”