Sohail Afridi Says He Was Abducted in Lahore as Punjab Government Rejects Claim

LAHORE: A political confrontation erupted in Lahore after Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi alleged that he was abducted by authorities and later left by the roadside, a claim rejected by Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari.

Afridi said he and his colleagues were abducted and that he was later left without security after the authorities came under pressure.

He also alleged that there had been an attempt to abduct the chief minister of a province and warned that such actions could deepen divisions within the country.

A senior KP government official travelling with Afridi gave a different account of the incident.

According to the official, Afridi voluntarily entered a Punjab Police vehicle while attempting to secure the release of PTI workers detained during the day’s events.

Some of the workers were later released, while others remained inside the vehicle. The official said Afridi refused to leave as long as the remaining workers were detained.

The police vehicle subsequently moved a distance from its original location before Afridi was removed from it, according to the KP official.

Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari disputed this account and said Afridi had entered the police vehicle voluntarily.

Video footage shared by Bokhari showed Afridi walking toward the police vehicle and getting inside. In another part of the footage, he can be seen refusing to leave while a person asks him to vacate the vehicle.

Speaking to a private television channel, Bokhari said the situation developed after PTI supporters gathered around the police vehicle, leading officers to believe that the vehicle was under threat.

She said the driver subsequently moved the vehicle away from the area before stopping and allowing people to get out.

Bokhari rejected the suggestion that Afridi had been formally arrested and said there were no police officers at the location where he was later seen. She added that his security personnel and a cameraman were present.

She also dismissed Afridi’s allegation that he had been left without security following pressure on authorities, responding sarcastically that the only pressure in the situation was his “low blood pressure”.

There was also conflicting information in posts published from Afridi’s official X account.

One post, published at around 9pm, said Afridi had himself boarded a Punjab Police vehicle and reached a police station.

Another post published shortly beforehand said he was participating in a protest rally with party workers on Lahore’s Mall Road.

The differing accounts have added to the uncertainty surrounding the circumstances of the chief minister’s movement in the city.

KP Information Minister Shafi Jan supported Afridi’s version of events and accused Punjab Police of attempting to abduct the chief minister.

Jan alleged that Afridi had been separated from his security detail and forcibly shifted into another vehicle before being taken to a remote location.

He described the incident as an example of what he called police high-handedness and said the treatment of an elected chief minister was unconstitutional and undemocratic.

Jan warned that any attempt to abduct a provincial chief minister could damage relations between the provinces and described the episode as a potential threat to the federation.

PTI also condemned what it described as Afridi’s arrest and said the incident amounted to an insult to the mandate and dignity of the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The party said such incidents could increase mistrust and tensions among Pakistan’s provinces.

The dispute followed Afridi’s visit to Lahore, which developed into a confrontation involving PTI workers and the Punjab administration.

Afridi had initially planned several activities in Punjab but travelled to Lahore to offer condolences to the family of a senior party worker who had died from burn injuries.

During the visit, PTI leaders and workers encountered police blockades at several locations.

Afridi criticised the police action and announced plans for a nationwide street movement on September 27 against what he described as “fake rulers”.

He also criticised Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif over her remarks that she felt threatened by the other provinces.

Afridi responded that he felt no threat from the people of Punjab and said political differences should not be turned into hostility between provinces.

As Afridi’s convoy moved through Lahore, large numbers of PTI workers gathered along roads and at various locations.

Party supporters chanted slogans and welcomed the KP chief minister at several points, including Do Moriya Pul on Circular Road.

Tensions rose at different points between police and PTI workers, with reports of scuffles as the convoy encountered blockades and sealed entry and exit points.

The competing accounts of the police vehicle incident remain unresolved, with the KP government and Punjab administration offering sharply different versions of what happened. Further investigation and official findings would be required to establish the circumstances conclusively.