Governor Kundi swears in Sohail Afridi as new CM of KP

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi on Wednesday administered oath of office to newly elected Chief Minister Sohail Afridi at the Governor’s House, marking an end to the tense political stalemate and days of uncertainty in the province.

Prominent political and administrative personalities including Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Speaker Babar Saleem Swati, Vice Speaker Suraiya Bibi, former Governor Shah Farman, senators, MLAs and MLAs, PTI provincial president Junaid Akbar and party central general secretary Salman Akram Raja attended the performance oath.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Secretary Shahab Ali Shah, Inspector General of Police Zulfiqar Hameed, Peshawar Commissioner and heads of various provincial departments were also present, along with several political and social personalities.

After the ceremony, Governor Kundi congratulated the new CM on assuming office and extended best wishes for the coming term.

The event, however, descended into chaos as party activists rushed to the stage to extend their best wishes to the new CM and chant slogans which disrupted the further proceedings.

Afridi’s appointment as CM followed the directives of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan. According to party sources, Khan’s instructions regarding Afridi’s swearing-in and cabinet formation were conveyed to KP’s PTI parliamentary party.

Read more: PTI’s Sohail Afridi elected new KP CM

According to sources, the newly elected chief minister has been given full powers to choose his cabinet from among the party’s elected representatives. Consultations between Afridi and central leaders have already begun, and some ministers are expected to retain their portfolios, including provincial finance advisor Muzzammil Aslam.

Earlier in the day, a PTI delegation, led by party Central General Secretary Salman Akram Raja, visited Governor Kundi at the Governor House. The delegation included President Babar Saleem Swati, former governor Shah Farman Khan, PTI Punjab chief Shaukat Basra, provincial president Junaid Akbar Khan, MLAs Mehboob Shah, Atif Khan, Shahram Khan Tarakai and other senior leaders.

Former Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur’s resignation triggered a legal dispute after Governor Kundi refused to accept it, citing discrepancies in the signatures of two separate resignation letters submitted on October 8 and 11. The governor returned the two letters and summoned Gandapur on October 15 for clarification.

Also Read: PHC orders KP Governor to administer oath of office to Sohail Afridi tomorrow

In a public statement on Gandapur, meanwhile, insisted that both letters bore his real signature.

Amid the controversy, the provincial assembly met on October 13 under the leadership of Speaker Babar Saleem Swati to elect a new leader of the House. Afridi, the PTI candidate, secured 90 votes to become the 30th chief minister of the province.

Governor Kundi had declared the election unconstitutional, saying no new chief minister could be elected until the resignation of the sitting governor was formally accepted. The PTI then approached the Peshawar High Court, which ruled in Afridi’s favor and ordered the governor to administer the oath of office by 4 p.m. on October 15.

The court further said that if the governor fails to comply, the Speaker of the Assembly would be allowed to take the oath.

Governor Kundi, who was in Karachi at that time, rushed to Peshawar and followed the court orders by administering oath to Afridi.