By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur’s disappearance entered its second day on Sunday, with opposition party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) accusing the government of his arrest, a claim denied by Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, who said police were actively seeking him.
“Chief Minister KP Ali Amin Gandapur is neither in our [Islamabad Police] custody nor is he in the custody of any other Pakistani institution,” Naqvi told reporters in Islamabad.
Naqvi said the government had “evidence of the PTI leader running from the KP House. I don’t know why he ran and for what reason.”
“We do not have the knowledge if he has reached KP or not. However, a camera footage of him fleeing the KP House is available,” the minister said.
“He himself is on the run. Islamabad police will deal with him as per law as they are definitely searching for him.”
The capital police conducted three raids at suspected locations on Saturday night but didnot find Gandapur.
“We still have blockades at certain points in the city and are actively searching for him,” Naqvi added
Police and paramilitary Rangers raided the KP House in Islamabad on Saturday evening after authorities accused Gandapur of leading a violent protest to the capital and warned him not to “cross any more red lines”.
Following the raid, the whereabouts of Gandapur remain shrouded in mystery. PTI initially claimed Gandapur, who led Khan supporters’ caravans to Islamabad from the KP province, was “kidnapped”, but later retracted.
A leaked CCTV footage from K-P House shows Gandapur entering the building’s gates dressed in a black shalwar kameez, only to exit shortly after in different civilian clothes, accompanied by plainclothes individuals, including security officials.
The footage contradicts earlier claims that Gandapur was arrested or abducted. It appears to suggest Gandapur left the protest intentionally.
However, social media reports continue to allege Gandapur is being held in an Islamabad “safe house”.
The PTI leader and former speaker of National Assembly Asad Qaiser on Sunday again accused the government of abduction.
“If the KP chief minister is not produced within 24 hours, the PTI will stage a nationwide protest,” Qaiser told reporters outside the provincial assembly.
“This is not an attack on Gandapur, but on the whole country. If it has happened to the PTI, it will happen to you too, as not even the chief executive of a province is safe.”
A Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly session, scheduled for today at 2pm to discuss Gandapur’s disappearance and “the serious damage caused by the Islamabad police, Rangers and government officials as they went inside the KP House in the capital”, was delayed. PTI supporters protested outside the KP Assembly, demanding Gandapur’s “release.”
Hundreds of supporters of the ousted premier Khan clashed with police in Islamabad on Friday and Saturday, as they attempted to hold a protest at the restricted D-Chowk area in the capital.
The demonstrations were organized against proposed constitutional amendments that the party says aim to curtail judicial independence. Khan, who has been imprisoned since August last year on multiple charges, is also at the center of the PTI’s protest campaign. Khan supporters have been holding rallies and gatherings to pressure the government for his release
Authorities said at least one policeman was killed in the clashes and dozens of other law enforcers sustained injuries.
Normalcy returned to Islamabad on Sunday afternoon as roads and thoroughfares reopened and mobile phone services were largely restored.
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