‘We did not invite him’: PTI’s Atif Khan on Gen Bajwa’s presence at niece’s wedding

ISLAMABAD: Former Khyber Pakhtunkhwa minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Atif Khan has rejected criticism over former army chief Gen (retd) Qamar Javed Bajwa’s attendance at his niece’s wedding, saying the ex-military chief had been invited by the groom’s family and not by him.

A video circulating on social media shows Atif explaining that the bride’s family was not involved in deciding which guests the groom’s side could invite, adding that he had not known who would attend the ceremony on their behalf.

“When children get married, guests attend. There is particular criticism over General Bajwa, but he was there from the groom’s side,” Atif said in the video.

He explained that the bride’s family was generally asked about the expected number of guests for arrangements rather than being consulted about the individual invitees of the other family.

“You do not ask the groom’s family who they are inviting. You only ask how many guests will be coming so that arrangements can be made accordingly,” he said.

Atif said that the groom’s family had its own political and social connections and was free to invite whomever it wished.

He said the groom’s side included politically connected people and that Bajwa was known to them, suggesting that they had extended the invitation to the former army chief.

“We had invited our own friends, PTI MPAs and senators. We did not know who would be attending from the groom’s side,” he said.

The clarification followed criticism directed at Atif and other PTI leaders after photographs and videos from the wedding in Peshawar surfaced on social media on Wednesday.

Bajwa was among the prominent guests at the ceremony, which was also attended by PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, former National Assembly speaker Asad Qaiser, opposition leader Mahmood Khan Achakzai and Senate Opposition Leader Allama Raja Nasir Abbas, along with other political figures.

The footage showed several PTI leaders, including Gohar and Qaiser, sitting with Bajwa, speaking to him and exchanging handshakes in what appeared to be cordial interactions.

The images triggered criticism from PTI supporters on social media, with questions being raised about the party leadership’s interaction with the former army chief, whom the party has repeatedly accused of playing a central role in the removal of former prime minister Imran Khan’s government in April 2022.

Imran has repeatedly alleged that Bajwa was instrumental in the events leading to his government’s ouster. Bajwa has previously rejected allegations of political interference.

The controversy also put Atif under scrutiny, with social media users questioning why he had invited the former army chief to a family wedding.

Atif’s response sought to distinguish between the guests invited by the bride’s family and those attending from the groom’s side, arguing that he had no say in the latter’s guest list.

The wedding was that of Atif’s niece, Hanan Khan, who married the son of Colonel (retd) Asad Alam Niazi, a Pakistan People’s Party-affiliated figure and chief executive officer of Bursheen LPG Pakistan Ltd.

Niazi’s political and military connections were cited by Atif as the likely reason for Bajwa’s invitation.