Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister (CM) Sohail Afridi on Monday night claimed he was "abducted" by authorities in Lahore and later left by the roadside without security, triggering a fresh political confrontation between the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-led KP government and the Punjab administration. However, the KP chief minister was not formally arrested, while Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari rejected his allegation and said Afridi had entered a Punjab Police vehicle of his own accord.
The dramatic episode unfolded during a Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) rally on The Mall, where police had detained several party workers, including Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Lahore President Mian Akram Usman and Vice-President Naeemullah Taj, amid a province-wide ban on public gatherings under Section 144. Media reports said more than a dozen Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) workers were arrested as police attempted to disperse crowds accompanying or welcoming Afridi's convoy. According to a senior KP government official accompanying Afridi, the chief minister himself boarded the police van in an attempt to secure the release of detained Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) workers.
Some workers were subsequently freed, but others remained inside the vehicle, prompting Afridi to refuse to get out, the official said. The police then drove the vehicle away from the original location before eventually removing Afridi from it, the official said. Afridi later told supporters that he and others had been abducted and alleged that the authorities had abandoned him on the roadside after coming under pressure.
"We were abducted, and then, when they received pressure from somewhere, they threw me by the roadside without security and left," he claimed. He also alleged that there had been a "conspiracy to abduct the chief minister of a province" and warned that the episode could have serious consequences for relations between the provinces. The Punjab government, however, presented a sharply different account.
Azma Bokhari said video footage showed Afridi voluntarily walking towards the police vehicle and getting into it. She said he subsequently refused to leave despite being asked to do so. In footage shared by the minister, Afridi can be seen approaching and boarding the vehicle, after which a person inside appears to ask him to "please leave the vehicle".
Azma later told a TV channel the police driver moved the vehicle because the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) supporters had surrounded it and officers believed the vehicle was being attacked. She said the driver stopped shortly afterwards and people got out and sat on the footpath. She accused KP CM of staging a "scripted and cheap act".
She alleged that Afridi also scolded his guards and pushed them aside when they attempted to prevent him from entering the vehicle. "Sohail Afridi is putting on a scripted and cheap act," she claimed. She said the Punjab government was treating the KP chief minister and his entourage with respect, but added: "We are treating them with respect, but they do not deserve it." The episode came after an already tense day in Lahore, where Afridi's visit had evolved into a political mobilisation campaign ahead of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)'s planned Sept-27 protest in Islamabad.
Earlier, Sohail Afridi arrived in Lahore, triggering a show of support by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) workers, with the party saying the "Punjab Street Movement" had formally been launched following his visit to the residence of deceased party worker Ishtiaq Khan. Afridi visited the residence of Ishtiaq Khan, offered Fateha for the departed soul, while expressing condolences and sympathies to his bereaved family. Ishtiaq recently died at Mayo Hospital from burn injuries sustained during a police raid on his house on 12th Rabiul Awwal, when he fell into a cauldron of boiling oil.
After the condolence visit, Afridi proceeded towards Data Darbar. His convoy was repeatedly stopped at different points as Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) workers and supporters gathered to meet him. The chief minister frequently came out onto the roof of his vehicle, waved to the crowds and responded to slogans raised in support of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan.
Near Ek Moria Pul, Afridi again emerged from his vehicle and was surrounded by dozens of workers, some of whom he invited onto the roof of his vehicle. Several workers became emotional while meeting the KP chief minister, who continued to interact with them. The convoy was welcomed at several points along the route, with people waving to Afridi from rooftops and streets.
He reciprocated and joined workers in raising slogans in favour of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder. Tensions also emerged between Afridi and Punjab Police personnel at various points after workers were allegedly pushed and scuffles broke out. The KP chief minister was seen intervening to secure the release of some workers from police personnel.
Objecting to the security arrangements, Afridi told Punjab Police officials, "I do not need Punjab Police. I am a Punjabi and a Pakistani; I do not need your security." "I refuse to take your security," he further said. Punjab Police personnel accompanied the convoy as part of the security arrangements for the KP chief minister, while traffic police officials made repeated attempts to manage the situation.