Khurram Zeeshan Rejects Cabinet Offer, Remains in Senate Race

Khurram Zeeshan, PTI’s dissenting Senate candidate from Kohat, said he refused a government offer of a ministry in exchange for withdrawing from the July 21 elections—a move he calls a bid to “stop seat-sharing” within the party.

He emphasized his nomination by Imran Khan and stated that simply participating in the race is his “victory.

Zeeshan expressed confidence that PTI’s “conscientious” MNAs will vote for him, noting that the party could have won five general seats numerically—but he remains puzzled why his candidacy wasn’t included in the official list despite his name appearing there.

While four other dissenting PTI candidates—Ayesha Bano, Irfan Saleem, Irshad Hussain, and Waqas Orakzai—have withdrawn in line with Imran Khan’s directive, Zeeshan is the only one still contesting.

Khurram Zeeshan holds law and journalism degrees from Peshawar University, passed the CSS exam, and briefly served as a civil judge in Abbottabad before moving to Dubai as a legal adviser.

He returned in 2011, joined PTI, served as district election commissioner, senior vice-president in the southern region, deputy general secretary of KP, and currently holds the position of provincial deputy information secretary.