Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s close associate, Usman Dar, has officially left the party, citing the events of May 9 as the primary reason for his departure. Dar’s brother-in-law had filed a petition regarding his disappearance in the Sindh High Court, and the province’s top court had ordered the police to register a case.
Dar, who was previously a special assistant during PTI’s rule, accused the party’s leadership of orchestrating the May 9 incidents. He alleged that Imran Khan himself chaired a meeting to plan a course of action in case of his arrest and “brainwashed” party workers to prevent his apprehension, using them as a human shield.
Dar’s exit from PTI follows a series of departures by prominent leaders, including Fawad Chaudhry, Shireen Mazari, and Pervez Khattak, in the wake of the May 9 events. A crackdown ensued, resulting in the arrest of numerous party members, including Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi.
Dar pointed out a divide within PTI, with one group advocating confrontational politics and another, which included figures like Asad Umar, Omar Ayub, Ali Muhammad Khan, Shafqat Mehmood, and himself, favoring reconciliation with the military.
Dar asserted that PTI’s foundations had been shaken after May 9, with the party chairman himself endorsing an anti-state narrative. PTI spokesperson Shoaib Shaheen questioned why Dar had remained silent on the May 9 matter until now, suggesting that Sindh’s interim home minister had confirmed Dar’s arrest. Shaheen also reiterated PTI’s condemnation of the violence that occurred on May 9.
