PTI sacks 8 lawmakers

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has kicked out eight of its Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) assembly lawmakers, who were accused by the party leadership of selling their votes during the Senate elections and did not respond to the party’s show-cause notices.On April 18, PTI chairman Imran Khan revealed the names of 20 of its lawmakers who allegedly sold their votes in the Senate polls held on March 3.The party also issued show-cause notices to them.These members of the provincial assemble (MPAs) included Nargis Bibi, Dina Naz, Nagina Khan, Naseem Hayat, Fauzia Bibi, Sardar Idrees, Obaid Mayar, Zahid Duranni, Abdul Haq, Qurban Khan, Amjid Afridi, Javed Naseem, Yasin Khalil, Faisal Zaman, and Sami Alizai.The lawmakers rejected the allegation and demanded that the party present evidence to the Nation Accountability Bureau (NAB) for investigations.However, the KP chief minister’s spokesperson Shaukat Yousafzai confirmed yesterday that party membership of eight of the PTI MPAs has been cancelled: “They did not respond to the party’s show-cause notices. However the fate of those who replied to the notices will be decided in a few days.”The MPAs who are kicked out from the party are Bibi, Naz, Nagina Khan, Hayat, Khalil, Qurban Ali Khan, Zia Ullah Afridi. and Amjid Afridi.After the announcement, the lawmakers criticised the party decision and said they replied to the show-cause notice but the party announced its decision without any evidence and listening to their version.Bibi said that she was unaware of the party decision as she had not yet received an answer to her reply to the show-cause notice, only finding out that her membership had been cancelled through the media.She said that she will move the court against the party chairman Imran Khan who “falsely” accused her.“If party chairman has any evidence against me of selling my vote, then why he does not give it to NAB [National Accountability Bureau] and other investigative bodies of the country,” she said.Yasin Khalil said that the party had sent some people for reconciliation, but he had declined to go with the PTI in future.“I replied to the party’s show-cause notice on time but refused to go with this party in future.”