SWABI, April 28: National Awami Party Pakistan (NAPP) district president Prof Munawar Khan and general secretary Bakht Aseer have opposed a merger of NAPP with the ANP.

Talking to Dawn here on Monday, Mr Munawar Khan said that he had left the ANP due to the dictatorial policies of its leaders. Now, it would be impossible to rejoin the party that he had once left on the bases of principles, he added.

According to reports, NAPP leader Ajmal Khattak had met with ANP veteran Khan Abdul Wali Khan at the letter’s residence in Walibagh on Friday and discussed the merger between the two parties.

Sources said that Mr Khattak—expected to be made patron-in- chief of the ANP—was likely to announce the party’s merger next month.

Prof Munawar Khan rejected the ANP leadership’s claim that their party was famous for its discipline and democratic culture, saying he himself was affiliated with the party for over two decades and was well aware of its politics in different periods.

Mr Bakht Aseer said: “I’m surprised by Ajmal Khattak’s move, who instead of strengthening his own party decided to go back to the ANP.” He deplored that undemocratic culture prevailed in almost all the mainstream political parties.