Now-suspended KP CM Sohail Afridi, assembly speaker in preventative custody: police

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi and several of his cabinet members are currently under preventative custody following the imposition of emergency and governor's rule by the federal government. This decision, made on Sunday, was based on the PTI-led government's alleged "deliberate" inaction on counter-terrorism. The opposition parties have criticized the move, claiming it to be politically motivated.

The whereabouts of Afridi were unknown to even his own party members, with the PTI earlier alleging that he had been arrested. However, there was no official confirmation of his detention. According to sources, Afridi and MNA Junaid Akbar were reportedly under house arrest under Section 3 of the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO).

Minister of State for Interior Tallal Chaudhry confirmed to Reuters that the chief minister and some of his cabinet members had been taken into preventive custody. He stated that those with pending cases would be charged and tried, while the others would be released. This detention took place on Sunday.

A senior police official confirmed to Dawn that eight individuals, including Afridi, Akbar, and assembly speaker Babar Saleem Swati, had been placed under preventative custody. On Sunday, PTI spokesperson Sheikh Waqas Akram argued that Afridi's arrest was not isolated from the federal government's decision to impose emergency and governor's rule.

He contended that these measures were politically motivated, targeting the PTI, undermining the elected government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and disregarding the democratic will of the people.