The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Assembly has rescheduled its session for today to discuss the unexplained disappearance of Chief Minister (CM) Ali Amin Gandapur, amid conflicting reports of his arrest following a protest in Islamabad.
Gandapur’s whereabouts became uncertain after his participation in a protest organized by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in Islamabad. The demonstration was in response to a call for a “peaceful protest” by the party’s jailed leader, Imran Khan. Protesters, including Gandapur’s caravan, entered the capital from Taxila, bypassing police barricades near the Nicholson Monument.
After arriving in Islamabad, Gandapur reportedly left PTI workers and went to KP House, from where he later “disappeared,” sparking rumors of his arrest. PTI initially claimed that Gandapur had been arrested, but KP government spokesperson Barrister Muhammad Saif later clarified on social media that the CM had not been “formally arrested,” despite a significant presence of police and Rangers at the KP House.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi also dismissed claims of Gandapur’s arrest, stating that the chief minister was neither in police custody nor held by any other institution. He further revealed that there was evidence of Gandapur fleeing his residence. “I don’t know why he ran and for what reason,” Naqvi remarked during a media briefing in Islamabad.
The confusion prompted KP Assembly Speaker Babar Saleem Swati to call an urgent assembly session on Sunday at 2 p.m. The agenda for the session includes discussing the alleged mistreatment of PTI protesters by police and Rangers, the “indiscriminate use of rubber bullets and shells,” and the damage to government property. The assembly will also address the CM’s sudden disappearance.
KP Governor Faisal Karim Kundi commented on the matter, saying that even PTI workers were uncertain about their leader’s whereabouts. “A drama is being created in the provincial assembly,” Kundi remarked, adding that, given the city’s surveillance systems, there should be video evidence of the CM’s supposed abduction.
The PTI political committee has criticized Gandapur’s disappearance, warning of “serious repercussions” if he is indeed arrested. Barrister Saif reiterated that Gandapur is on bail until October 25, and any arrest would be “an insult to the mandate of the people of KP.”
Despite these clarifications, PTI’s opposition leader in the National Assembly, Omar Ayub Khan, continues to insist that Gandapur was arrested from KP House.
As the situation unfolds, the KP Assembly session is expected to shed light on the CM’s status and the ongoing political tensions surrounding his alleged disappearance.
