Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi has returned after being denied permission to meet the founder of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, Imran Khan.
CM Afridi had reached Adiala Road on Thursday; however, Rawalpindi police stopped him from travelling at the Gorakhpur checkpoint. Afridi’s security team had initially planned a route from Rawalpindi to Adiala Jail. The chief minister arrived from the private housing society and was halted by a heavy police contingent following security protocols.
Permission was later granted for Afridi to proceed from Gorakhpur checkpoint to the factory checkpoint, which is located half a kilometre from Adiala Jail. Additional police units were deployed at the factory checkpoint, and the road was temporarily closed to traffic.
Speaking to journalists at the factory checkpoint near Adiala Jail, Afridi described an FIR lodged against him as “a full toss on a no-ball” and said he would seek to have it withdrawn. He urged authorities not to take action.
Afridi said those who abducted the two jirga members were “enemies of peace and of Pashtun traditions” and that anyone involved in terrorism, regardless of nationality, must be exposed and punished. He called for strict implementation of the national policy on Afghan residents and warned that violations of local customs would have “very severe” consequences.
He also stressed the duty of every Pakistani to respect the national anthem, flag, constitution, and the rule of law, and said concerns should be heard but should not be used to justify actions that hint at anti-national intent.
This is the sixth consecutive time CM Afridi has been denied from meeting with Imran, despite court orders issued by the Islamabad High Court.