PTI workers decry exclusion from Senate candidates list

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) workers are facing fissures over exclusion of party loyalist worker Irfan Saleem from the party’s final list of Senate candidates.
A large number of PTI workers gathered outside the Peshawar Press Club (PPC) here on Wednesday to record their protest against the final list of candidates for upcoming Senate elections from KP.
They carried placards and banners in support of Irfan Saleem and demanded transparency in the ticket allocation process.
The protesters expressed their strong disapproval over what they termed the unjust neglect of Irfan Saleem, a loyal companion of PTI founder Imran Khan. They claimed that Irfan Saleem’s name had been personally approved by Imran Khan for the Senate elections.
Protesters cited a recent meeting between Imran Khan and Aleema Khan, after which she clarified that the PTI chairman had directed the leadership to finalize Senate candidates in consultation. They also pointed to a post from Imran Khan’s official X, formerly Twitter, account which they said corroborated Aleema Khan’s statement.
However, party spokesperson Barrister Mohammad Ali Saif later claimed that a separate list of candidates was approved during his own meeting with Imran Khan in jail, a claim protesters said contradicts Aleema Khan’s version of events. “This contradiction raises serious concerns about transparency and internal democracy in the party,” one of the protesters stated.
The protestors alleged that Irfan Saleem was deliberately sidelined through a well-planned conspiracy, and questioned the decision to award Senate tickets to “capitalist elites” over grassroots workers. “What message are we sending by ignoring those who have sacrificed for the party and favoring the wealthy?” asked another protester.
They urged PTI leadership to recognize and reward the sacrifices of genuine workers, warning against imposing closed-door decisions without consultation with the party base. Journalists and supporters at the scene also acknowledged Irfan Saleem’s longstanding contributions to the party.
It may be noted that PTI’s finalized list for the Senate elections includes names such as Mashal Yousafzai, Murad Saeed, Faisal Javed, Mirza Afridi, and Pir Noor-ul-Haq Qadri. Azam Swati has been nominated for the technocrat seat, while Rubina Naz has been selected for the women’s reserved seat.
The final list was reportedly finalized following a late-night meeting between Barrister Saif and Imran Khan in Adiala Jail.