‘Missing’ CM Gandapur turns up in Peshawar

PESHAWAR: The ‘missing’ Chief Minister (CM) of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Ali Amin Gandapur turned up in Peshawar on Tuesday morning.

The adviser to the Chief Minister on Information Barrister Mohammad Ali Saif claimed on Monday night that the federal government might have taken Khyber Pakhtunkhwa CM Ali Amin Gandapur into custody.

In a statement, Barrister Saif said that there had been no contact with Ali Amin Gandapur since noon on Monday, and all his phone numbers were switched off.

He added that Gandapur was not in Peshawar but in Islamabad, and his whereabouts were unknown, despite continuous efforts to reach him. “Attempts are being made to arrest Ali Amin Gandapur,” he said.

According to sources, during the ‘missing’ hours, KP CM was in a meeting with senior officials in Islamabad, and matters related to law and order in the province were discussed during the meeting

The venue where the meeting was held had limited mobile signals and jammers, making it difficult to contact the CM, according to sources.

Upon returning to Peshawar CM KP held a Zoom meeting with PTI leaders.

CM KP updated the members about the arrest of PTI workers.

Meanwhile, Barrister Saif also confirmed contact with the CM and said that he was able to contact him after 3 am today after he arrived in Peshawar.

He said he will have more details about the whereabouts of the CM after he meets him later today.

Gandapur goes ‘missing’ as Islamabad police crackdown on PTI leadership

He said we had been unable to reach the CM and his guards since last night.

He said that the center and the Punjab government attempted to make our rally unsuccessful and started conducting raids for the arrest of PTI leaders.

The Centre has launched a fresh crackdown against the leadership of the Imran Khan-founded party after the latter “violated” the newly enacted public gathering law during the party’s Sunday power show in the capital.

The Islamabad police arrested PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Khan, lawmaker Sher Afzal Marwat, Zubair Khan and others outside the Parliament House following the National Assembly session.

The Islamabad police said that PTI leaders Omar Ayub Khan and Zartaj Gul Wazir would also be taken into custody. Heavy contingents of police were deployed outside the parliament while all entry and exit routes to the Red Zone were also closed from D-Chowk, Nadra Chowk, Serena, and Marriott, except for Margalla Road.