CM Gandapur’s Resignation is Returned

Governor Faisal Karim Kundi returned the resignation letter of Gandapur over ‘disparate signatures’ and called him to come on October 15 to resolve the matter. 

Kundi returned the resignation letter to Gandapur:

Through his social media platform X, Faisal Karim Kundi cleared that the resignation letter of Gandapur has been returned. He said that he has sent two separate letters to Gandapur. 

He also shared a letter that had been sent to Gandapur, in which he said that Gandapur had submitted two resignation letters to the Governor’s House on October 8 and October 11. Moreover, he said that these letters had been returned to Gandapur due to the ‘disparate or unalike signatures’ on the letters. 

Karim Kundi, however, called out Gandapur to the Governor’s House to resolve the unalike signature matter. In the letter, he said, “Since I am out of city, and intend to return to Peshawar on the ever of October 15, therefore, you are advised to visit Governor House on October 15 at 3 pm so that the authenticity of the alleged resignations could be verified and the matter is settled as per the mandate of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.”

In a follow-up message on X, Gandapur said that his resignation letter was submitted on October 8, was denied by the Governor’s House, and has now been accepted. Moreover, he said that his signatures on both resignation letters are not disparate. They are his original signatures. 

Gandapur’s resignation:

On October 8, Gandapur claimed that he had sent his resignation letter to the Governor’s House, and now he is resigning from his role as the provincial chief executive. However, Governor House initially denied that the House received any such letter from Gandapur. 

On October 11, Kundi stated that the House had received the handwritten resignation letter from Gandapur. He said, “After thorough scrutiny and legal formalities as per the constitution and relevant laws, the subject’s resignation will be processed in due course of time.” 

On October 10, a parliamentary delegation, including Asad Qaiser, Atif Khan, Junaid Akbar, and others, met Kundi at his residence in Islamabad. PTI’s general secretary, Salman Akram Raja, confirmed that Imran Khan has directed Sohail Afridi to assume the CM’s role. 

During the election for the Chief Minister, PTI asked PPP for its support, as PPP has always claimed to give value to the democratic norms. Kundi, however, stated that Gandapur’s acceptance of the resignation letter would be accepted as per constitutional requirements to ensure peace and public services in the province.

Nominations for the next CM:

On Sunday, 4 candidates appeared for the seat of the Chief Minister, which is scheduled for today. The nominees include PTI’s chief minister-designate Sohail Afridi, while Maulana Lutfur Rehman of JUI-F, Sardar Shah Jehan Yousaf of the PML-N, and Arbab Zarak Khan of the PPP. 

After a thorough scrutiny of the nominees, the KP Assembly speaker, Babar Saleem Swati, approved their nominations. A candidate has to secure at least 73 votes among 145 in the KP assembly to win the CM seat.

One of the nominees, Sohail Afridi, said, the selection of the new CM should be as per the Constitution. Moreover, democracy should prevail. He said, “No one should interfere in the process of electing the new chief minister.”

Questions over PTI’s haste in the selection of CM:

While talking to the media in the Assembly premises, Dr Ibadullah expressed his astonishment over the selection of the new CM while the previous one’s resignation is still pending. He said, “How can there be two chief ministers in Khyber Pakh­tunkhwa? The governor has not yet approved the resignation tendered by the incumbent chief minister, while PTI is proceeding to elect another chief minister.” He stated, “We are dealing with politically inexperienced people.” 

JUI-F parliamentary leader Maulana Lutfur Rehman said that PTI is in haste to select the new CM. He said, “The governor can still return the resignation since it has not been approved yet. It is inappropriate to hold an election for chief minister while the incumbent is still in office.”

When reporters asked him whether JUI-F is going to contest today’s election process, he replied that anyone can contest any unconstitutional act.