KARACHI: The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) on Saturday issued show-cause notices to its 32 elected members of the local government for violating party directives by abstaining from voting during the election of Karachi mayor.

The party had set up a 12-member committee comprising members of its legal wing to look into the cases of these members.

The absence of these elected members had led to the defeat of Hafiz Naeemur Rehman, the joint candidate of the Jamaat-i-Islami and PTI, and victory of Pakistan Peoples Party’s Barrister Murtaza Wahab in the mayoral election.

The 12-member committee is headed by retired judge Rana Zaki. It has given the mandate “to weigh up the cases of chairmen, vice chairmen, councillors who deviated from party lines in local government elections of mayor, deputy mayor, chairmen, vice chairmen and did not comply with the directives of the PTI chairman, president of Sindh chapter, and proceed against them as per law”.

A notification to this effect was issued by PTI Sindh chapter president Haleem Adil Sheikh. It also warned of strict action if any of the members, who had abstained from the June 15 voting, failed to justify his or her absence in the crucial phase of the local government election.

“Parliamentary leader of the respective house and president-Sindh will issue a show cause letter to the deviated, defected members and seek their response in three working days,” it said.

“Upon satisfaction the show-cause letter can be withdrawn and upon non-satisfactory replies or failure to respond to show-cause notices, the Sindh president of PTI will send their cases to legal committee for action.”

Published in Dawn, June 18th, 2023