Rifts within PTI after backing out of Karachi alliance with PML-N

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KARACHI: Rifts appeared within Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) on Wednesday after it ditched Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) in the election for the chairman in Karachi's district West.

PTI leader Imran Ismail said that the decision to form an alliance with Nawaz-league was made by Ali Zaidi. He claimed that his side abided by the agreement and that it was the PML-N which deviated.

Admitting to have met Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) leader and Karachi mayor-elect, Waseem Akhtar, in jail, Ismail said he had no discussion on politics during the meeting.

The alleged alliance with MQM, however, seems to have caused difficulties for PTI as party leader Ali Zaidi promised to dissociate him if it turned out that the PTI candidate voted for Muttahida in the election for chairman for district council.

Amid statements by PTI Karachi chapter leadership, PTI central information secretary Naeemul Haq also disapproved of the PTI-MQM alliance in Karachi and said the matter was being investigated.

"PTI cannot approve any relationship or association with Altaf's MQM. Our policy is not to cooperate with any elements who support Altaf," Haq said on Twitter.

To this, Imran Ismail responded saying, "I wish Haq would once have asked me before issuing the statement".

Slamming PTI's defection from the alliance, PML-N leader Senator Nihal Hashmi reacted, "Imran Khan's inconsistency is being transferred to party's lower ranks".

"PTI has only one principle: power and else everything is meaningless for them," he added.