• Assembly session summoned tomorrow to elect new CM
• Imran, PTI leaders throw weight behind Afridi
• Gandapur submits second resignation letter to governor; Kundi says approval to come after ‘thorough scrutiny’

PESHAWAR: With Khy­ber Pakhtunkhwa Gove­rnor Faisal Karim Kundi yet to accept the resignation of Ali Amin Gandapur, the KP Assembly speaker summoned a session of the assembly on Monday to elect Sohail Afridi as the new chief minister.

The development followed Mr Gandapur’s second resignation letter to the KP governor, which was acknowledged by the latter in a statement posted on his ‘X’ account. Mr Kundi said the resignation letter would be processed “in due course of time” after “thorough scrutiny and legal formalities as per the Constitution and the relevant laws”.

In a separate interaction with media persons in Islamabad, the governor said he would be in a position to give an opinion on the subject when the office opens on Monday. Mr Kundi claimed that he had not received the first letter from Mr Gandapur, delivered by hand to the Governor’s House. Against this backdrop, sources told Dawn that the matter of CM’s replacement could drag on for several days due to expected legal nitpicking to delay the new appointment. On the other hand, Mr Gandapur also left for his native Dera Ismail Khan district on Friday after saying farewell to the CM secretariat staff.

KP Assembly session

In the evening, the KP Assembly speaker convened the house sitting for Monday, according to a notification issued by the assembly secretariat. It stated that the speaker while exercising the powers conferred upon him under paragraph (b) of rule 31 of the KP Assembly Procedure and Conduct of Business Rules 2025, has called the sitting on Monday at 10am, which was earlier called for Monday, October 20, 2025.

The KP Assembly Secre­tariat subsequently issued an agenda for the session. According to the agenda, the election of the new CM will take place tomorrow while the nomination papers for the post can be submitted by this evening.

Speaking at a press conference at the KP Assembly, PTI General Secretary Salman Akram Raja said they were of the view that the resignation of a CM under Article 130 (8) of the Constitution did not require the governor’s approval. He said that the Supreme Court’s judgements also provided that the resignation from constitutional positions did not require such approval.

Imran, party leaders back Afridi

The incarcerated party chief as well as other leaders threw their weight behind Mr Afridi, who was picked by Imran Khan to formulate “a comprehensive policy aimed at eliminating terrorism and establishing lasting peace”.

PTI KP President Junaid Akbar, flanked by party leaders Salman Akram Raja and Asad Qaiser, addressed a press conference in Peshawar after a party huddle on Saturday, throwing full support behind Imran’s pick for office, Sohail Afridi. Mr Akbar vowed that they would not take any dictation in this regard as the nomination of a new CM was the sole prerogative of the ruling party.

“No one has the right to say that chief minister-nominate Sohail Afridi is not acceptable to them…” Mr Akbar, who is an MNA, said. In apparent response to a press conference by the Pakistan Army’s spokesperson, he said that “you have to accept the decision regarding the chief minister nomination, taken by the party”.

Junaid Akbar criticised the institutions for creating hurdles in the process and also took the federal ministers to task for indulging in the character assassination of Mr Afridi. “I request the powers that be to avoid creating hurdles in the appointment of our new chief minister,” he said, adding such actions would harm the province and country.

He said all 92 PTI lawmakers would fully support their new leader of the house, adding there was no chance of changing their loyalties. He said they were also in contact with the other political parties in the KP Assembly to get their support. He said that PTI was not against the military operations, but they should be carried out precisely based on confirmed intelligence to avoid collateral damage.

‘Grassroots worker’

Incarcerated PTI chief Imran Khan, in a statement posted on his X account, also suggested that the election must be allowed to proceed without interference, warning any attempts to derail the process would be met with a vigorous public protest. Mr Khan does not have access to his social media handle and it remains unclear who runs the account on his behalf.

He said Mr Afridi was chosen for the CM office because of his longstanding affiliation with the PTI and the decision reinforced the narrative of “involving grassroots workers in decision-making instead of relying solely on electables”.

According to the statement, Mr Gandapur was removed from office because he was “embroiled in disputes”, particularly supporting the “policy of confronting terrorism through empty displays of force rather than a comprehensive political strategy”.

“The year 2025 marks the worst period in Pakistan’s history in terms of terrorist incidents, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa can no longer withstand the crisis. I hope the new chief minister and his team will work with public representatives to adopt a comprehensive policy aimed at eliminating terrorism and establishing lasting peace,” he claimed.

The ex-PM claimed that the military leadership in 2021 proposed a plan for the resettlement of militants who had laid down their arms. “However, our elected representatives from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the tribal areas opposed it, and therefore it was never implemented during our tenure,” he said, adding that the PTI was falsely accused of this plan.

Ikram Junaidi in Islamabad also contributed to this report

Published in Dawn, October 12th, 2025