Senior Civil Judge Abbas Shah orders Afridi to be arrested and produced before the court
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi addresses a video message on January 27, 2026. SCREENGRAB
A district court in Islamabad on Wednesday issued non-bailable arrest warrants for Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister Sohail Afridi in a case linked to allegations involving state institutions.
The case relates to allegations that CM Afridi made misleading remarks against government institutions and damaged their credibility. The National Cyber Crimes Investigation Agency registered the case under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca) 2016.
Senior Civil Judge Abbas Shah presided over the hearing and noted the Chief Minister’s absence during the proceedings.
The judge subsequently ordered the issuance of a warrant of arrest to secure CM Afridi’s presence, directing the authorities to arrest and produce him before the court, citing his non-appearance during the trial.
Read more: Court issues non-bailable arrest warrants on KP CM Sohail Afridi
The umpire was told that notices had been issued earlier but Afridi did not turn up. He adjourned the case till February 10 and directed the authorities to comply with the order and submit a report on the execution of the orders at the next hearing.
Reacting to the rulings, Afridi said he was hit by what he described as a series of attempts to undermine him politically, including allegations linking him to crimes and terrorist groups.
In a statement on X, Afridi said efforts were first made to prevent his election as chief minister, followed by what he called false allegations of drug smuggling and smuggling, and later attempts to link him with terrorists.
First, an attempt was made to push the envelope in my election as the Chief Minister, he tried to make false accusations of smuggling, then he killed the terrorists, then he will force the people of his native region to evacuate by force, and he will cause political damage.
May 9 someone’s case…
— Sohail Afridi (@SohailAfridiISF) 28 January 2026
Afridi said that under no circumstances did his name appear in connection with the May 9 riots, but claimed that efforts were now being made to include him after other efforts had failed.
He also repeated a claim of responsibility for the unrest, saying: “The whole nation knows that ‘whoever stole the CCTV footage is the same one who planned May 9’.”
“Instead of working so hard and conspiring against me or PTI, they should sit down and talk to Imran Khan – the real representative of the Pakistani nation – so that Pakistan can move on from the crises and problems they have created and lasting peace can be established here,” he said.
A special assistant to the chief minister for information, Shafi Jan, criticized the arrest warrants against Afridi and accused authorities of using legal action to block an upcoming protest.
In a statement, Shafi Jan, the special assistant to the KP CM on information, said the non-voluntary arrest warrant was meant to stop a protest planned for February 8. He said the public was tired of what he described as negative political actors “imposed” by the federation.
“We have promised to roll up the bed for those practicing anti-people politics,” he said. Shafi also accused what he called a “rejected group” of resorting to cheap tactics to revive his politics.
