• CM-elect Afridi receives 90 votes; opposition boycotts ‘unconstitutional’ election
• Vows to oppose military action, urges Centre to review Kabul policy, take steps for Imran’s release
• CJ’s intervention sought amid ‘deliberate delay’; law officer links governor’s refusal to invoke Article 255

PESHAWAR: After electing Sohail Afridi, a firebrand lawmaker from the Khyber tribal district, amid a boycott by the opposition, the PTI in a ‘pre-emptive move’ approached the Peshawar High Court chief justice on Monday with a request to nominate an authority for administering the oath to the CM-elect.

The decision to involve the PHC came amid concerns that Governor Faisal Karim Kundi, who has not accepted the resignation of Ali Amin Gandapur as of yet, will not administer the oath to Mr Afridi, who also delivered his maiden speech in the house.

In a joint application moved by KP Assembly Speaker Babar Saleem Swati and MPAs Shah Abu Turab and Sher Ali Afridi, the lawmakers requested the PHC CJ to exercise his powers under Article 255 of the Constitution and nominate someone to administer the oath, as the governor had allegedly made himself unavailable for the purpose. Sources in the Governor’s House confirmed to Dawn that the summary had been received.

During the hearing, PTI leader Salman Akram Raja informed PHC Chief Justice S.M. Attique Shah that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was without a chief minister and the province could not function without a chief executive. The CJ directed an additional attorney general to confirm from the Governor’s House whether the summary sent by Mr Swati had been received. The matter will be taken up for hearing on Wednesday, as it was necessary to know about governor’s response to the issue, the CJ said.

Salman Akram Raja informed the CJ Mr Gandapur resigned on Oct 11, but the resignation was not accepted. The governor’s approval for the CM’s resignation was not mandatory under the Constitution, he said, adding that Mr Kundi knew about the Oct 13 election, yet he tried to delay it.

Meanwhile, Additional Attorney General Sanaullah said the Constitution was clear that if the governor refused to administer the oath, then Article 255 could be invoked. “The speaker has sent the summary; it is not yet clear whether this summary has reached the governor or not,” he added.

During the course of the hearing, the chief justice remarked that a petition was earlier filed against him when he had invoked Article 255 for the oath-taking of MPAs elected on reserved seats. He observed that the governor’s opinion was important and the court could only intervene after receiving the opinion.

Firebrand CM-elect

In his maiden speech to the house, CM-elect Sohail Afridi charted a confrontational course for himself, vowing to abolish the legislative cover for the military’s presence in the province and take steps for the release of incarcerated ex-premier Imran Khan.

Mr Afridi said he would annul the KP Action (in Aid of Civil Power Ordinance) 2019 in his first cabinet meeting, adding that no military operation would be carried out in his presence.

Mr Afridi claimed attempts were made to eliminate the PTI in KP and alleged that militants were resettled despite several protests by his party leaders in Swat and other adjacent districts. He also questioned the result of thousands of intelligence-based operations carried out against militants and reiterated that military action was not a solution.

He said that Afghan nationals, living in Pakistan for the past 50 years, were being kicked out. “I request the federal government and the military establishment to reconsider the Afghan policy and must take the KP government, locals, tribal elders and public representatives in the loop for a positive response,” he said.

He said the Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement was banned and its leader Manzoor Pashteen and other political workers were placed on the Fourth Schedule. He also sought a briefing on this decision. He claimed May 9 was a ‘false flag operation’ to defame the PTI, arrest Mr Khan, and pressure other political workers. “We cannot do anything in other parts of the country but will carry out an inquiry into the arson at Radio Pakistan Peshawar,” he said.

Mr Afridi said that he would follow the directions issued by the PTI founder and the party leadership and would lead from the front. He further said that he would order an inquiry into rigging during elections in KP.

Earlier, Ali Amin Khan Gandapur congratulated the CM-elect and also requested the power-that-be to shun delaying tactics regarding his resignation and not make a joke of the democratic process.

Election and boycott

As the process to elect the new CM commenced, opposition leader Dr Ibadullah protested and said the procedure was unconstitutional since the resignation of Mr Gandapur had not been accepted. He said that the “incumbent CM” tendered his resignation twice, but according to the Constitution, another chief minister could only be elected after the resignation was accepted. The opposition eventually boycotted the process.

Speaker Swati, however, ruled that the process was being conducted in accordance with the Constitution and the rules of the KP Assembly. He added Mr Kundi had publicly acknowledged receiving the resignation.

“It is clear that under Article 130 sub-clause 8, no approval or resignation acceptance by the governor is required and the governor is only the addressee, not the appointing authority of the chief minister and has no authority to force an unwilling chief minister to remain in his office,” he said. “I rule that pursuant to the resignation by Mr Ali Amin Khan Gandapur, and election for the post of KP chief minister, is being lawfully conducted on this day, October 13, 2025, in accordance with the Constitution and rules of the KP Assembly,” the speaker said.

The chair subsequently announced the polls. Mr Afridi secured 90 votes while the other candidates, including JUI-F’s Lutfur Rehman, PML-N’s Shah Jahan Yousaf, and PPP’s Zarak Khan, secured no votes.

Published in Dawn, October 14th, 2025