Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi and several senior Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders are reportedly being held together at an undisclosed location following their detention.
Afridi was taken into custody from the Chief Minister House during the early hours of October 11. The operation followed preparations that included sealing the Red Zone by approximately 5am.
According to the available account, Afridi was alone inside a locked room when officers broke open the door and entered. Two officers then remained with him for around 30 to 40 minutes, during which they reportedly spoke in a cordial atmosphere.
Afridi was said to be anxious during the encounter. However, reports indicated that officers did not handcuff him or subject him to inappropriate treatment before moving him to an undisclosed location.
Babar Saleem Swati and Junaid Akbar Also Detained
The reported operation also involved other prominent PTI figures in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Provincial Assembly Speaker Babar Saleem Swati was taken into protective custody from the Speaker House.
Former Gilgit-Baltistan chief minister Khalid Khurshid was reportedly present at the residence when Swati was taken away. Meanwhile, PTI provincial president Junaid Akbar was also taken into protective custody.
Akbar was reportedly staying in a room connected to the kitchen at the Speaker House when the incident occurred.
Information about the detentions suggests that the three PTI leaders were taken away with “dignity and respect”. They are reportedly being kept together at the same undisclosed location.
However, their current whereabouts have not been publicly identified in the available account. Authorities have also taken away their mobile phones and other personal belongings, according to the reported details.
Lawyer Muhammad Bashir Briefly Detained
The developments extended beyond the senior PTI leadership, with advocate Muhammad Bashir also being picked up outside the Peshawar High Court.
Bashir had filed a petition challenging Afridi’s detention. Following his pickup, lawyers approached the high court’s chief justice to raise the matter.
The chief justice advised the lawyers to submit a petition, after which Bashir was released shortly afterwards.
Reports indicated that authorities had detained him under Section 3 of the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO).
Questions Remain Over the Leaders’ Whereabouts
The reported detention of Afridi, Swati and Akbar has drawn attention to the circumstances surrounding their custody and their continued presence at an undisclosed location.
Although reports describe the leaders as being held together, their precise location remains unknown. The removal of their phones and personal belongings has also added to the uncertainty surrounding their current situation.
Meanwhile, Bashir’s brief detention and subsequent release have added another development to the unfolding situation in Peshawar. Further clarity about the leaders’ custody and whereabouts remains pending.
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