Barrister Gohar Khan will be the contender for the chairperson of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, PTI Senior Vice President Sher Afzal Marwat said late Tuesday, hours after Imran Khan opted not to retain the top seat owing to legal challenges as the party prepares for internal elections.
"The PTI's candidate for chairmanship will be Barrister Gohar." "The PTI chairman [Imran] has said that Gohar will be his candidate for the post," Marwat told a private news channel, while Imran remains imprisoned in Rawalpindi's Adiala Prison and embroiled in legal fights.
Although numerous party leaders agreed that, in an unexpected turn of events, Imran would not be running in the intra-party elections, they maintained that the ultimate candidate would be named later.
This move will bring an end to Imran's stint as the party's leading figure since its inception more than two decades ago.
The PTI's Core Committee gave formal clearance on Monday to organize intra-party elections within the 20-day time period set by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). If the party fails to fulfill the instructions, it will lose its bat symbol.
Imran's nonparticipation is due to his five-year disqualification as a legislator in the Toshakhana case, in which he was found to be involved in "corrupt practices by concealing the benefits he accrued from the national exchequer wilfully and intentionally."
Despite the announcements by Marwat and other leaders, the PTI has maintained that there are no plans for Imran to resign from his post.
In a statement on X, the PTI firmly refuted "speculations" about the election of a new party chairman.
"Discussions are ongoing on all the important issues regarding the holding of intra-party elections," the statement said.