‘Estranged’ member of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Jahangir Khan Tareen and his son Ali Tareen reached Lahore from Dubai late Friday night, reported 24NewsHD TV channel on Saturday.

Differences developed between former prime minister and PTI Chairman Imran Khan and Tareen, who was once considered to be his close associate, when the latter’s name appeared in some NAB cases.  

These differences were later exploited by the opposition parties ahead of the no-trust motion which they brought against the PTI government in March 2022. 

The opposition also wanted to seek Tareen’s support in election for the Punjab chief minister. 

So much so that the support of his group, called the Jahangir Khan Tareen (JKT) group, was considered to be crucial both for the PTI and the opposition parties ahead of voting on the motion in the National Assembly and in the election for the Punjab CM.    

On April 2, 2022, 24News had reported that Tareen had announced his group’s (JKT) support for Leader of the Opposition in the Punjab Assembly and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Hamza Shehbaz in election for the seat of Punjab chief minister. 

The arrival of Tareen in Lahore yesterday has especially gained more significance in the current political situation wherein a deadlock persists in the case of oath-taking of Punjab Chief Minister-elect Hamza Shehbaz, and PTI, Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) and the opposition parties, mainly PML-N and PPP, are locked in a tough battle for the most coveted post of the province. 

Reporter: Ali Akbar