Akbar S. Babar Announces Legal Challenge to Appointment of Mahmood Khan Achakzai as Opposition Leader

Islamabad: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founding member Akbar S. Babar has announced that he will challenge, before a legal forum, the National Assembly Speaker’s anticipated decision to appoint Mahmood Khan Achakzai as the Leader of the Opposition.
In a statement, Akbar S. Babar said that any move by the Speaker of the National Assembly to notify Mahmood Khan Achakzai as Opposition Leader would be in violation of a Supreme Court verdict. He warned that such a decision would be legally contested.
Referring to the Supreme Court’s judgment reported as PLD 2018 (page 370), Akbar S. Babar stated that the apex court has clearly held that a convicted individual is not competent to make political decisions. He added that the Rules of the National Assembly do not permit the Speaker to appoint an Opposition Leader at the behest of a convicted person.
He further said that disregarding the Supreme Court’s clear ruling would amount to contempt of court and would reflect what he termed “deal-making politics.” According to him, such politics has impoverished the public while benefiting those in power, and under the guise of reconciliation, has enabled actions detrimental to the country.
Akbar S. Babar alleged that influential politicians who undermine the state, malign national institutions, plunder resources, or damage the economy often remain beyond the reach of accountability. He claimed that even those who spread unrest, attack institutions, or facilitate terrorism escape the law due to their influence.
Calling for an end to what he described as “deal-making politics,” Akbar S. Babar said the time has come to bury such practices. He declared that a second phase of a “decisive struggle” against internal enemies, acting on the directives of external forces, is about to begin.
He concluded by saying that this struggle would be fought on political, legal, and media fronts, expressing confidence that victory would ultimately belong to Pakistan and its people.