ECP strikes MQM-P's Khalid Maqbool off party leadership list - The Express Tribune

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has removed Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui’s name as the convener of Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) from its official website, leaving the party among 13 political parties without a recognised head in the commission's records.

The commission removed Maqbool over MQM-P's inability to hold an intra-party election.

The list also includes Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) and Pakistan Sunni Tehreek. The remaining eight are relatively lesser-known political organisations with no representation in the national or provincial assemblies.

The development has brought into focus the status of political party leadership under the ECP’s regulatory framework, with several parties, including those represented in parliament, currently lacking officially recognised heads.

PTI lost its recognised leadership status following a dispute over its intra-party elections and related electoral matters involving party founder Imran Khan.

TLP is also listed without a recognised head. Its former chief, Saad Rizvi, has remained out of public view since a state crackdown following the party’s violent long march last year. Concerns have persisted over his whereabouts, with speculation that he may be in government custody. However, his detention has not been officially confirmed.

Similarly, PKMAP chief Mahmood Khan Achakzai no longer appears as the party’s recognised head in the ECP records. Achakzai was elected as the party’s sole member of the National Assembly, while PKMAP has no representation in any provincial assembly.

Pakistan Sunni Tehreek is also among the parties without a recognised head on the commission's list.

Meanwhile, the ECP has issued a show-cause notice to MQM-P over its failure to hold intra-party elections. The party has submitted its response to the commission.

MQM-P last held intra-party elections on October 15, 2021. Since then, the ECP has issued several notices to the party, which secured extensions totalling one year at different stages to fulfil the requirement.

The latest extension expired on October 15, 2026.

Under the relevant legal and regulatory requirements, political parties are required to hold intra-party elections at intervals not exceeding five years.

The removal of Siddiqui's name from the ECP website comes amid the party’s failure to hold fresh intra-party elections within the prescribed timeframe, raising questions about its leadership status in the commission's official records.

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