Achakzai | Pakistan

In his first speech after being appointed the opposition leader in the National Assembly, Tehreek Tahafuz-i-Ayeen Pakistan (TTAP) chief Mehmood Khan Achakzai on Monday vowed unconditional support for strengthening the lower house of Parliament. It is worth mentioning that several parts of Achakzai’s nearly 30-minute speech were muted in the NA’s livestream. At the outset of his address, Achakzai said: “The TTAP makes a promise to the whole country — if you wish to strengthen this house … you will receive our unconditional support. “Without this house, we are nothing,” he said, adding that the NA should be at the centre of Pakistan’s policies. “Mistakes happen in the world. Sit, think, sleep on it, as they say in English. What’s happened has happened but having animosity and hurling abuse at each other will not help us,” he said. Quoting the Holy Quran, Achakzai said that work which focused on welfare and aid must be supported. “Whenever you talk about the public’s welfare, our votes will be with you,” he asse...

KARACHI: National Assembly Opposition Leader Mehmood Khan Achakzai on Monday called for a “new Pakistan”, which is democratic, where there is rule of law, and where there is no cruelty. Achakzai — who is on a four-day visit to Sindh along with a delegation of opposition alliance Tehreek-i-Tahafuz-i-Ayin-i-Pakistan (TTAP) to mobilise the masses for a nationwide strike and protest rallies scheduled for February 8 — expressed these views while addressing lawyers at the Sindh High Court Bar Association (SHCBA) in Karachi. Apart from him, other TTAP leaders, including Majlis Wahdat-i-Muslimeen chief Allama Raja Nasir Abbas and PTI’s Asad Qaiser, also spoke at the seminar titled “Protecting the Basic Structure of the Constitution of Pakistan”. “Let’s make Pakistan a democratic country, a country where people have the power, and there is rule of law and the Constitution,” said Achakzai, adding that democracy had not been allowed to flourish in the country. “The country is ailing like a cancer patient.” “Let’s comply...

After a months-long delay, Tehreek Tahafuz Ayeen-i-Pakistan (TTAP) chief Mehmood Khan Achakzai was appointed leader of the opposition in the National Assembly on Friday. Incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan had named Achakzai for the opposition leader’s slot in the NA in August last year. The notification, seen by Dawn, read: “Honourable Speaker has been pleased to declare Mr Mehmood Khan Achakzai, member of the National Assembly, as leader of the opposition in the NA, with effect from January 16, 2026.” “The notification has been issued under Rule 39 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the National Assembly, 2007,” said a statement issued by the National Assembly Secretariat. Notification by the NA Secretariat declaring Achakzai as the opposition leader in NA. — Photo via author Prior to the notification being issued, NA Speaker Ayaz Sadiq summoned PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan and Chief Whip Amir Dogar to his chambers, stating that he had a “notification to give” them. “Come to my ch...

PTI leader Amir Dogar on Thursday said that the party remained firm on having Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) Chairman Mahmood Khan Achakzai as its nominee for the slot of the National Assembly opposition leader. The PTI had formally requested Achakzai’s appointment to the position last month in the wake of the post being left vacant after Omar Ayub’s disqualification. However, the National Assembly Secretariat maintains that Ayub’s disqualification is a sub-judice matter with Speaker Ayaz Sadiq making it clear that, in line with parliamentary practice, such announcements were made on the floor of the house to allow all members an equal opportunity to propose a candidate for the position and since he had not yet made any announcement regarding the schedule for submitting proposals, no request or nomination could be entertained at this stage. A statement issued today by Dogar said that the PTI had nominated Achakzai for the role, after which the government had written a letter to him raising objections t...

ISLAMABAD: Calling the proposed 27th Constitutional Amen­dment a “9/11 on Pakistan”, Tehreek Tahaffuz-i-Ayeen-i-Pakistan (TTAP) chief Mahmood Khan Achakzai announced a nationwide protest, arguing the measure would “shatter the foundation of the country”. Mr Achakzai said the peaceful protest would be held under the slogan of a Habib Jalib ghazal: “Aise Dastoor Ko, Subh-i-BeNoor Ko, Me Nahi Manta, Mai Nahi Janta”. Speaking at a news conference at the National Press Club, he anno­unced two additional slogans: “death for dictatorship and democracy live long” and “free the prisoners”. Mr Achakzai described himself as a “true patriotic” who has taken the oath to protect the country five times, noting that the current National Ass­embly speaker, Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, administered two of those oaths. Opposition alliance announces nationwide protests; plans to observe ‘Black Day’ He recalled an exchange from 1993 with then-speaker Gohar Ayub Khan. “I spoke to the speaker that he has taken an oath of protecting the Const...

The Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) has agreed to lend its support to the PTI in nominating Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party’s (PkMAP) Mehmood Khan Achakzai for the opposition leader’s slot in the National Assembly (NA). The development comes over a week after the PTI formally requested the appointment of Achakzai — whose party is also part of opposition alliance Tehreek Tahafuz Ain-e-Pakistan (TTAP) along with five other parties, including the PTI — as leader of the opposition in the NA. The position of the opposition leader in the lower house of Parliament has been vacant since the disqualification of PTI’s Omar Ayub Khan on August 5. On August 20, incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan named Achakzai for the post of NA Opposition Leader in the NA. According to a statement posted on JUI-F’s X account today, a PTI delegation visited Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s residence in Islamabad, “where the JUI-F agreed to support the nomination of Mehmood Khan Achakzai”. The PTI delegation included Asad Qaiser, PTI Khyber-Pakht...

• Party leaders say legal options to restore Ayub, Shibli to be exhausted first • Omar says PkMAP chief’s nomination to boost opposition alliance ISLAMABAD: Amid controversy surrounding the nomination of Mahmood Khan Achakzai — the head of the Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party — and Senator Azam Swati as opposition leaders, PTI insiders have said these appointments will only proceed if former leaders Omar Ayub and Shibli Faraz remain barred from parliament. The party plans to avail all legal options to reverse the disqualification of National Assembly Oppo­s­ition Leader Omar Ayub and Senate opposition leader Shibli Faraz, who were disqualified by the Election Commission of Pakis­tan in light of the May 9 sentences. Against this backdrop, the PTI chief earlier this week named Mr Achakzai, who also heads the PTI-led opposition alliance Tehreek Tahafuz Ayeen-i-Pakistan, and Senator Swati for these coveted roles. The decision, however, upset many in the party, and a debate ensued over why an outsider was picked to l...

Achakzai is Imran's new pick for NA opp leader