Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi on Thursday castigated the Centre and Punjab administration after being denied a meeting with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan for the 10th consecutive time at Adiala jail.
Afridi, who arrived at Adiala Jail in official protocol, was stopped once again when police blocked his convoy at Dahgal checkpoint, where a heavy contingent had closed the road leading to the prison.
The chief minister confronted police officials, questioning the restrictions placed on him. “You are putting up borders against citizens of your own country,” CM Afridi told officers.
“You stopped me the day before yesterday and again today. What message are you trying to give?” He criticised police for what he called “inhumane treatment” of women two days earlier during a protest by Imran’s sisters.
The chief minister said KP was part of Pakistan, and he himself was not “a CM of any foreign country,” adding that placing barriers for a provincial chief executive was unacceptable.
“Are you trying to tell the world KP is no longer part of Pakistan?” he asked. “Explain what message you want to send by blocking a chief minister.”
Afridi said he and PTI supporters always visited peacefully: “We sit calmly here. We do nothing illegal. You are pushing the situation towards danger.”
Meetings with the PTI founder have been a point of contention between the former ruling party and the government for quite some time, with the last meeting held last week when ex-PM’s sister Uzma was allowed to meet him.
Tensions have escalated outside Adiala jail recently as PTI protests, including scuffles with police and jail staff, continue over meetings with the ousted prime minister, who has been imprisoned there for over two years.
Two days earlier, the PTI founder’s sisters staged a sit-in near Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail after being denied a meeting with their incarcerated brother, which was ended following police action.
The protesters gathered at the Factory checkpoint after Noreen Khan, Aleema Khan and Uzma Khan. The police officials used water cannons to scatter the participants of the sit-in. Some of the protesters resisted the police operation by hurling stones, leading to the arrests of several PTI workers.
‘Constitutional right’
After being turned back once more, Afridi told reporters outside Adiala Jail that despite court orders, he was repeatedly prevented from meeting the PTI founder. “I have come here for the 10th time. A chief minister is being denied a meeting despite judicial instructions,” he said.
Referring to the incident involving Imran Khan’s sisters, he said, “What happened with them is before everyone. Non-political women were attacked with a water cannon.” He accused the Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, of personally ordering the action.
Afridi doubled down on criticism of the government, saying Imran Khan and his wife had been “unjustly imprisoned.” He labelled the incumbent leadership as “certified thieves,” warning that accountability would come “when our government returns.”
He claimed attempts had been underway for three and a half years to sideline Imran Khan. “Since 1947 they have repeated the same formula. But since April 9, 2022, they have been up against a nation that loves Imran.”
The chief minister said powerful circles should engage in dialogue rather than confrontation. “This is not anyone’s father’s Pakistan. It belongs to all of us. We want an independent judiciary and restoration of democracy.”
Afridi added that authority to conduct negotiations had been formally given by Imran to Opposition Leaders in National Assembly and Senate Mahmood Khan Achakzai and Raja Nasir Abbas, respectively, saying: “We stand by every decision of Mahmood Khan Achakzai.”
Responding to a question on former spy chief Faiz Hamid, Afridi said, “He was an employee of an institution. If he’s punished for anything, that’s an internal matter.”
Calling the repeated denial of jail meetings a violation of his democratic rights, he said, “I come to meet my leader — this is my constitutional right. They have even placed my passport on the control list.” –Agencies
