An anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Peshawar has reissued arrest warrants for the non-functional Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister Sohail Afridi and a Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) activist. The warrants are linked to the investigation into the attack and arson at the Radio Pakistan Peshawar building during the unrest of May 9-10, 2023.
During the proceedings on Wednesday, Judge Wali Muhammad Khan also extended the interim pre-arrest bail for several PTI leaders, including former provincial ministers Taimur Saleem Jhagra and Kamran Bangash, as well as Peshawar party president Irfan Saleem. Their bail is now valid until November 17, when the court will resume the hearing.
Missing suspects and legal arguments
The court decided to reissue the warrants for Sohail Afridi and PTI activist Amir Khan Chamkani after previous warrants, issued on October 28, were returned unserved. Advocate Ali Zaman, representing Afridi, informed the court that his client has been missing since October 11. He alleged that Afridi was taken from the Chief Minister’s House on the same day governor’s rule and an emergency were imposed in the province, though no formal arrest has been recorded.
While the defence claimed Afridi's whereabouts are unknown, a federal minister had previously stated that the non-functional Chief Minister and certain cabinet members were in preventive custody. The court granted the defence more time to prepare their arguments before the next hearing.
Forensic evidence and new nominations
The prosecution recently submitted a supplementary challan (a formal police report) naming Afridi and four other PTI members as accused. These individuals were not part of the original First Information Report (FIR) or the initial charge-sheet. Their inclusion follows a forensic analysis of video footage by the Punjab Forensic Science Agency (PFSA) and the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra).
According to the investigation officer, the station director of Radio Pakistan Peshawar recorded a new statement after forensic findings matched the facial features of the suspects with individuals seen in rioting footage. Nadra also provided identification details that linked the suspects to the video evidence. However, the accused have challenged these findings, claiming the footage is not related to the May 9 incident.
Trial of 75 accused
The ATC is currently conducting the trial of 75 individuals in connection with the Radio Pakistan case, including both serving and former lawmakers. The original FIR was registered at the East Cantonment police station under the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) and various sections of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC), which deals with criminal offences.
Aasan alfaaz mein
Peshawar ki adalat ne Sohail Afridi aur ek PTI worker ke dobara arrest warrant jari kar diye hain. In par ilzam hai ke unhon ne May 2023 mein Radio Pakistan ki building ko nuksan pohanchaya tha. Sohail Afridi ke wakeel ka kehna hai ke woh 11 October se gayab hain. Adalat ne Taimur Jhagra aur Kamran Bangash ki bail 17 November tak barha di hai.
