Islamabad, Feb 09 (PTI) Jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party on Friday ruled out forging an alliance with the Pakistan Peoples Party and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, saying it is in a position to form a federal government on its own.
Independent candidates backed by Khan’s party have won 55 out of the 139 National Assembly results announced by the election commission so far following unusual delays, leading to allegations of vote rigging. The PML-N has bagged 43 seats while PPP has won 35.
Overall, 169 seats are needed to secure a simple majority out of its total 336 seats, which include the reserved slots for women and minorities.
“We are not in contact with PPP or PML-N,” PTI chairman Barrister Gohar Khan was quoted as saying by the Geo News.
He claimed that his party was winning 150 National Assembly seats and would be able to achieve the required number of seats to form government at the Centre.
“We are not intending to form a coalition government with PPP and PML-N,” he said. “We will form the government at the Centre and Punjab,” he added.
He said the PTI has a clear lead in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and will form a government there as well.
“PTI will remain in Parliament and will play its role,” he added.
He said that independent candidates belong to PTI and asserted they would not join any party against party directives amid fears of horse-trading.
His statement comes soon after PML-N leader Ishaq Dar claimed that independent candidates, who have won, are in contact with his party.
“The independents have contacted us and they will join any party in the next 72 hours as per the Constitution,” said the former finance minister while speaking to Geo News on Friday as the election results continue to pour in.
Dar said that the PML-N cannot force anyone to join the party, adding that they are being contacted by candidates who are willing to join their party.
