In a dramatic twist amid PTI’s ongoing Senate ticket controversy, Maryam Wattoo, sister of former First Lady Bushra Bibi, has publicly slammed the party for dragging her sister’s name into internal power plays.
She warned PTI leadership in no uncertain terms: if the party has any compulsion to award a Senate ticket to Mashal Yousafzai, do so — but stop using Bushra Bibi's name as justification.
Maryam Wattoo said she had directly informed senior PTI lawyer Salman Akram Raja that her sister had never discussed any Senate ticket for Mashal Yousafzai, and any attempt to imply otherwise is completely false. “I’ve clearly told him — Bushra Bibi has nothing to do with this,” she said, adding that the family does not appreciate her name being politicised for backdoor deals.
The scathing statement comes amid growing questions within PTI ranks: Was the ticket to Mashal Yousafzai genuinely approved by the jailed founder, or was he misled by insiders claiming it came from “above”? Maryam didn’t mince words: “If this ticket was granted based on pressure from above, or someone lied to Khan from inside the jail — that’s on you,” she said, hinting at serious internal manipulation within the party.
Her remarks add another explosive layer to the already messy PTI Senate nominations, with accusations of favouritism, backchannel decisions, and betrayal swirling just days ahead of the elections. For now, Maryam Wattoo’s message is loud and clear: keep Bushra Bibi’s name out of it.