Islamabad, Jan 20 : A right-wing politician backed by incarcerated former prime minister Imran Khan’s party was on Tuesday appointed as the opposition leader in Pakistan Senate, in a move expected to lower political temperature in the country.
Raja Nasir Abbas, chief of Majlis Wahdat-i-Muslimeen (MWM), who was elected as senator last year with the support of the Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), was appointed to the Senate, the upper house of the bicameral parliament of Pakistan.
The appointment comes days after Mehmood Khan Achakzai, chief of Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party, another ally of PTI, was appointed as leader of the house in the National Assembly.
On Tuesday, a notification issued by the Senate Secretariat said: “In pursuance of sub-rule (3) of Rule 16 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Senate, 2012, the chairman Senate has been pleased to declare Senator Raja Nasir Abbas as leader of the opposition in the Senate, with immediate effect.”
Senate chairman Yusuf Raza Gilani announced Abbas’ appointment as the opposition leader during the session of the Upper House.
“I want to give a ruling. Before proceeding further, I consider it necessary to place on record the legal and procedural background relating to the declaration of the leader of the opposition in the Senate.
“Rule 16 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Senate, 2012 mandates that the chairman Senate should declare as leader of the opposition the member who commands the support of the majority of the members in opposition,” he said.
The MWM is a Shiite political party and Abbas is the only senator in the Senate. The party is a strong ally of PTI and its founder Imran Khan, incarcerated since August 2023.
Abbas’ candidature for leader of opposition was nominated and backed by the PTI, which is desperately looking for political support to mobilise masses to bring the government under pressure.
Abbas’ appointment came following the disqualification of former senator Syed Shibli Faraz by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on August 5, 2025 after the latter’s conviction in cases related to riots and vandalism.
After disqualification, Faraz was removed from the post of leader of opposition in the Senate.
In his maiden address as the opposition leader, Abbas credited Imran Khan for “making me a senator” and asserted that he was “his (Imran’s) loyal companion, and will never compromise on principles.”
His appointment comes days after Achakzai, chief of Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party, another ally of PTI, was appointed as leader of the house in the National Assembly. Achakzai was appointed after PTI leader Omar Ayub Khan too was disqualified by the ECP after their convictions in cases related to the May 9, 2023 riots.
Both key appointments are expected to lower the political tension between the government and PTI, as Achakzai has also been mandated by Imran Khan to hold talks with the government.
Khan, 73, has been incarcerated since August 2023, when he was arrested for the first time. Multiple cases have been registered against Khan after his government was toppled in April 2022.
After the February 8 general elections in 2024, Khan had called the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) as ‘mandate thieves’ alleging that they stole his party’s seats by manipulating results to come to power.
The PTI has earlier launched multiple demonstrations demanding Khan’s release and has now already announced a massive protest on February 8 to protest its “stolen mandate” in the general polls two years ago.
In his first address to the National Assembly on Monday, the veteran Pashtun politician promised to strengthen democracy while urging the government to take initiative for talks with the opposition.
Achakzai said that the election held on February 8, 2024 had raised the political temperature in Pakistan. “To bring that down, you (government) hold the button. If you lower the pressure, the road for dialogue will open,” he said.
