ISLAMABAD: Secretary General of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Salman Akram Raja, resigned from his position on Tuesday, following a wave of internal criticism over the party’s recent protest in the country’s capital.
Raja’s departure comes just a day after PTI staged a protest march in Islamabad, which was marred by a lack of participation from many senior party members.
Meanwhile, Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) chief Sahibzada Hamid Raza also resigned from PTI’s political core committee after criticism over the failed November 24 protest. According to media reports, Raza has also resigned from the National Assembly seat.
The PTI leadership has faced increasing backlash from within its own ranks after key figures, including Salman Akram Raja, were absent from a high-stake protest rally for the release of its jailed founding Chairman Imran Khan at D-Chowk in the capital.
PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, who was also absent from the protest, confirmed his resignation. However, he refused to accept Raja’s resignation.
Former Khyber Pakhtunkhwa minister Shaukat Yousafzai was among the loudest voices of dissent, condemning the party’s top leadership, particularly Barrister Khan and Raja, for their failure to attend the protest.
The protest, which began Sunday, was organized to demand the release of PTI founder and former prime minister Imran Khan, who has been imprisoned since August 2023.
The demonstration was led by Bushra Bibi, Khan’s wife, and Ali Amin Gandapur, a close aide of Imran Khan and Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and lasted until authorities launched a heavy crackdown, dispersing crowds at D-Chowk near Pakistan’s parliament building.
Despite initial showings of leadership, both Bushra and Gandapur were criticised for their sudden disappearances after the law enforcement agencies grand operation, with Gandapur making a brief public appearance from the PTI stronghold of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa while Bushra has not been seen in public since.
The disarray has fuelled claims that the leadership failures have compounded the party’s struggles. “All the responsibility lies with the central leadership,” PTI leader Shaukat Yousafzai stated in a scathing remark, accusing them of undermining the party’s efforts.
Salman Akram Raja, a senior lawyer, was appointed by Imran Khan as PTI’s secretary general in September.
His resignation marks the latest twist in a growing crisis within the party, as its leadership continues to grapple with internal divisions and external pressures.
