Leaked Audio Clip Indicates Widening Rifts Within Imran Khan's Party In Pakistan

A new audio clip featuring Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Ali Muhammad Khan has surfaced, indicating widening rifts within the leadership of the Imran Khan-founded party after its "do-or-die" protest fiasco in Islamabad, Geo News reported.

The audio clip was leaked days after PTI suddenly delayed its march after a government crackdown on protesters trying to reach D-Chowk, drawing widespread condemnation within the party. Questions were raised within the PTI parliamentary leadership about why supporters were told to go to D-Chowk instead of holding a sit-in in Sangjani, as Imran Khan had ordered.

In the audio, which Ali Muhammad Khan confirmed was his during a talk with Geo News, the PTI leader said that Imran Khan had ordered the leaders to set up a protest camp in Islamabad's Sangjani area, not at D-Chowk in the Red Zone, according to Geo News report.

In the audio leak, Ali Muhammad Khan said, "The PTI founder had not asked to come to D-Chowk, but to Islamabad. Khan Sahib had said that the final sit-in location would be confirmed after the party members reached Islamabad." He said that Imran Khan had given instructions in the presence of Barrister Gohar Faisal.

Questioning the role of Imran Khan's sister, Aleema Khan, the PTI leader asked why did she made the call instead of the party chairman Gohar Ali Khan.

He asked, "The PTI founder had said that there was no place for hereditary politics in our party, so why did Aleema Khan call the protest herself?" He further said that Khan had said party leadership would give the call, according to Geo News report.

In the audio clip, Ali Muhammad Khan said that PTI's aim was to hold talks through the protests at the orders given by Imran Khan. He further said that Imran Khan was not aware of his wife, Bushra Bibi's presence in the protest and was informed regarding this by Barrister Gohar Ali Khan.

Khan said, "The PTI chairman and secretary general should have announced that the sit-in would be held in Sangjani," adding that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur was also in agreement with this. He said that no one had the right to override the decision of PTI founder, Geo News reported.

Stressing that PTI should have followed Imran Khan's instructions, Ali Muhammad Khan said, "We should have followed our leader's orders and stopped in Sangjani. No one, including Bushra Bibi, has the right to override the founder-chairman's decision." He said, "When Barrister Saif had conveyed the message of the founding chairman, we should have acted on it."

The PTI protests, demanding the release of former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, took a violent turn on Tuesday, resulting in the deaths of four security personnel and two PTI supporters, Dawn reported. The PTI protesters were met with intense tear gas upon reaching Islamabad's D-Chowk following which the clash between protesters and security forces broke out.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)