Pakistan’s federal authorities have intensified legal and political pressure on the major opposition party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), declaring Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister Sohail Afridi and five provincial lawmakers as proclaimed offenders in multiple cases, according to official records and court notices.
Judicial advertisements published in national newspapers on Wednesday named Chief Minister Afridi, along with MPAs Mena Khan, Amjad Ali, Shafiullah Jan and Iqbal Afridi, as proclaimed offenders in two cases registered by Islamabad’s Counter Terrorism Department (CTD).
The court-directed notices demand their appearance within 30 days, warning that strict legal action would follow non-compliance.
The move comes amid a broader crackdown in which 70 of 92 PTI members in the KP Assembly are now under scrutiny by Islamabad police in connection with multiple criminal cases.
Widespread cases against PTI lawmakers
Police records indicate that Islamabad authorities have compiled cases against PTI lawmakers spanning several years, including serious charges under the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA), such as attacks on police and Rangers personnel, violent protests and killings of law enforcement officials. Many of the accused lawmakers have yet to secure bail.
According to records, the KP chief minister is wanted in 11 separate cases, of them seven are related to terrorism. Former KP CM Ali Amin Gandapur has the highest number of cases, with 52 FIRs filed across 18 police stations in Islamabad between 2022 and November 2024.
Senior assembly officials also targeted
KP Assembly's Deputy Speaker Suraya Bibi has been booked over an allegedly violent protest in November 2024. Provincial Minister for Local Government and Higher Education, Mena Afridi, faces four cases registered at Golra, Aabpara, Noon, and Secretariat police stations.
Speaker Babar Swati has also been named in a case at Secretariat Police Station, while Faisal Tarakai of Swabi is nominated in a case invoking seven provisions of the Anti-Terrorism Act. Police records confirm that Aaqibullah, brother of former National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser, is also booked in a case at Secretariat Police Station.
Political context
Authorities say the cases arise from a series of PTI-led protests and marches in Islamabad since 2022, many of which reportedly turned violent. Law enforcement agencies allege protesters attempted to breach high-security zones, attacked police and Rangers personnel, and caused extensive property damage.
PTI has rejected the allegations, calling them politically motivated and part of a broader campaign targeting its leadership and elected representatives, particularly in KP. The party maintains its protests were constitutional and peaceful, and that the legal actions are aimed at weakening its political position.
The declaration of the sitting chief minister and multiple lawmakers as proclaimed offenders is expected to escalate tensions between the federal government and the PTI-led provincial administration, with both legal and political ramifications likely in the coming days.
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