Jahangir Tareen, a former leader of the PTI party and a prominent figure in the sugar industry, has announced the formation of a new political party named “Istehkam-e-Pakistan.” More than 100 former members of the National Assembly and leaders from the former ruling party have joined the party.
The announcement took place during a dinner hosted by Aleem Khan, another estranged PTI leader. Notable figures who joined the party include Imran Ismail, Ali Zaidi, Amir Kayani, Firdous Ashiq Awan, Mahmood Molvi, Fayyazul Hassan Chohan, Murad Raas, Jai Parkash, GG Jamal, Ajmal Parvez, Nauman Langrial, Naurez Shakoor, Syed Rafakat Ali Gillani, Mumtaz Mehrvi, Mehr Irshad Kathia, Mian Usman Ashraf, and Major (retd) Khurram Rokhiri.
Tareen is expected to hold a significant press conference with his party members tomorrow. Several PTI leaders had left the party after blaming Imran Khan for the riots that erupted in the country following his arrest in a corruption case. Tareen holds influence over important leaders in Karachi, interior Sindh, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, and Balochistan.
Tareen, once a close associate of Imran Khan, developed differences with him after being investigated for a sugar scam in 2021. Tareen’s group of 25 MPAs played a crucial role in ousting the PTI-led Punjab government and supporting PML-N’s Hamza Shehbaz as the chief minister. Tareen himself was disqualified by the Supreme Court in 2017 and subsequently had his review petition rejected in 2018.
