‘I was abducted’: KP CM Sohail Afridi accuses Punjab govt as police deny arrest

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi on Monday accused Punjab government of attempting to abduct him after videos showed him inside a police van, a claim rejected by Lahore police.

The controversy erupted after videos showing Afridi inside a Punjab Police van went viral on social media.

Speaking after the incident, Afridi claimed that he was abducted and later brought to the roadside and left there.

“The Punjab government should be ashamed,” he said, adding that the Punjab government and Punjab Police would be responsible if anything happened to him in the province.

However, the Lahore police officers rejected reports that Afridi had been arrested or detained.

He said the KP chief minister had voluntarily boarded the police van and that the vehicle moved ahead due to security concerns.

The Lahore police chief said the impression that Afridi was being kept in police custody was contrary to the facts, adding that adequate security arrangements had been made for the KP chief minister.

A video circulating on social media shows Afridi standing with his workers and security personnel before getting into the Punjab Police van.

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In the video, a police official can be heard asking Afridi to come out of the van, but he refuses to leave. Shortly afterwards, the driver moves the vehicle forward.

No police official can be seen inside the van with Afridi.

In another video, Afridi is seen sitting inside the Punjab Police van along with one of his workers and two security guards. The worker filming the video can be heard shouting that the chief minister has been abducted, while Afridi appears to be smiling.

KP Information Minister Shafi Jan also rejected the Punjab Police’s version of events.

“If the police did not arrest him, how did Sohail Afridi get here?” he questioned, alleging that an attempt had been made to abduct the chief minister.

He claimed that KP workers followed the vehicle and came under pressure, after which Afridi was made to leave the vehicle when the workers reached the scene.

Punjab Information Minister Azma Bukhari, meanwhile, dismissed the incident as “another drama”.

She said Afridi himself entered the police van while police officials repeatedly asked him to get out.

Bukhari further claimed that Afridi told his security guards to move away when they attempted to intervene.