'Minus-one formula' in the works again

Express Tribune

6 hours ago

As tension thickens over the political future of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan, both nationally and within his own party, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Wednesday rejected what it described as a concerted campaign to politically sideline its founder amid renewed murmurs of a "minus Imran" formula.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur denounced the "conspiracy" to impose governor's rule and sideline the party's patron-in-chief, while party spokesperson Sheikh Waqas Akram accused PML-N's Azma Bukhari and her allies of running a palace-backed agenda to fracture PTI from within.
Azma said that Imran Khan had been "sidelined by his own sister and party".
"Look at fate's irony. The one who sought to sideline Nawaz Sharif has himself been pushed aside at home and within his party," she said in a statement.
Azma alleged that Aleema Khan, Imran's sister, is continuously plotting against K-P Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur and that Gandapur himself had recently acknowledged conspiracies against him.
"If Ali Amin had not managed to get the provincial budget approved in time, he would have been constitutionally forced to step down," she stated.
The provincial minister also accused the "Aleema Khan group and PTI's social media team" of running a campaign against Gandapur.
Azma noted that PTI is split into three factions at the Centre and three separate groups in K-P.
In K-P, one group is led by Junaid Akbar, another by Atif Khan and the third comprises rebellious party members, she said
She added that for the past 12 years, K-P had been left at the mercy of "incompetent and corrupt politicians".
In contrast, Azma said, "Punjab has become a role model for merit, good governance and transparency".
Reacting to Bukhari's remarks, PTI alleged that the entire ruling coalition – "a court of puppets and maids" in Waqas's words – was obsessed with the idea of "minus Imran" and had "disgraced itself" in the process.
Simultaneously, Gandapur, speaking outside the Supreme Court, warned that a covert plan was underway to impose a financial emergency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and "usurp" its PTI-led government, linking the moves to deliberate exclusion of Imran Khan from the budget process and backdoor power plays.
Gandapur rebuffed speculation that Imran had become politically irrelevant. "Minus Imran? The PTI founder is the party and no one can hold a position higher than him," he said.
Stressing Imran's continuing authority, he added, "If the founder wants to end the government, I can do it in a minute. This government belongs to him".
He alleged that some actors were trying to exploit Imran's incarceration to advance their own agendas. "When the founder is free, these agenda-driven individuals will be unmasked. The public will judge those weakening Imran."
He further claimed that meetings had been deliberately obstructed and consultations blocked. "A conspiracy was underway to take over our government, but it failed," he added.
Describing the quick passage of the provincial budget without Imran's consultation, Gandapur added, "The best budget is ours we just needed to tell Imran. As the government, we have the power to amend it anytime. Any necessary changes directed by the founder will be implemented."
He warned of an alleged plan being hatched behind the prime minister's back to "impose a financial emergency, enforce governor rule, and seize control of the province."
Meanwhile, in a parallel response issued from party headquarters, PTI's central spokesperson Sheikh Waqas Akram took direct aim at PML-N's Azma Bukhari. "In their desperation to 'minus' Imran Khan, the entire royal court stands disgraced and exposed," the statement read.
It went on to accuse the ruling alliance of "burying the Constitution, the law, justice, democracy, values, and humanity itself" in its effort to sideline the PTI founder.
"By the grace of God, Imran Khan has not been 'minused' but multiplied, and the nation has placed him above all others," Waqas declared. According to the statement, Imran's rising popularity amid "repression and fascism" had unnerved the ruling camp.
He accused government operatives of repeatedly attempting to divide the PTI and weaken its grassroots base. "Desperate and defeated puppets, mired in humiliation and hysteria, now try to cover their shame by spreading conspiracies of division and discord within PTI," he said.
Waqas claimed that every plan over the past three years to "fracture the unity of a party that guards the Constitution and democracy" had ended in failure and disgrace. "Imran Khan is not only the leader of PTI. He is the leader of the nation. Despite the dirty tricks and palace conspiracies, Imran Khan remains Pakistan's hope," he added.
He said the party would weather this storm like it had before. "Just as we've faced every previous challenge with unity, we'll do so again. The maids and lackeys of the regime will lose sleep once again".
He also blasted governance in Punjab, accusing the ruling coalition of corruption. "The mandate thieves of Punjab now carry the shameful stain of Rs1 trillion in financial misconduct," he claimed.
Targeting Bukhari directly, he added: "Instead of spouting unhinged propaganda as the unbridled mouthpiece of these mandate thieves, she should explain to the people how their wealth is being plundered under the leadership of 'Panama Queen'".