Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry said on Monday that the now-dysfunctional Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi and some cabinet members were taken into preventive custody.
“Yes, I can confirm that the [now-dysfunctional] chief minister [Sohail Afridi] and some of his cabi-net members have been taken into preventive custody,” minister Talal Chaudhry told Reuters.
If any of them have any cases to be tried against them, they will be charged and tried, but the others will be released, he said, adding that the detentions happened on Sunday.
President Asif Ali Zardari on Sunday proclaimed an emergency and governor’s rule in Khyber Pakh-tunkhwa (KP) on the advice of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, citing the province’s worsening securi-ty situation.
“The President approved and signed the summary upon the Prime Minister’s advice under Articles 232 and 234 of the Constitution of Pakistan,” the President Secretariat’s Media Wing said in a press release.
The decision followed recommendations from the federal cabinet, formal advice from the prime min-ister and law-and-order reports submitted by relevant security institutions.
PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, while condemning the imposition of emergency and gover-nor’s rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, called the move a “grave political mistake”.
In a post on X, Gohar warned that the federal government’s decision would undermine democratic rights and provincial autonomy.
The emergency rule came a week after Khan’s supporters had rallied for days in the province, intend-ing to march to Islamabad to demand his release and provide medical treatment.
The march began in Lakki Marwat on October 4 after negotiations between the government and oppo-sition failed to reach an agreement.
The talks broke down over disagreements concerning counterterrorism cooperation in KP and access to incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan, including a meeting with his personal doctor.
The government and opposition traded accusations over the failure to reach an agreement as Afridi continued leading the march through the province. –Agencies
