What happened
An anti-terrorism court in Peshawar has issued arrest warrants for former Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister Sohail Afridi and four other Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders in connection with the Radio Pakistan attack case, according to Dawn. Judge Wali Mohammad Khan ordered the warrants under Section 204 of the Code of Criminal Procedure after law enforcement presented a supplementary charge-sheet naming the unarrested individuals.
Key facts
- The five newly accused individuals are former chief minister Sohail Afridi, ex-provincial ministers Taimoor Saleem Jhagra and Kamran Bangash, PTI Peshawar district president Irfan Saleem, and party activist Amir Khan Chamkani. None were originally cited in the initial FIR or charge-sheet.
- According to Dawn, investigation officer DSP Khushal Khan noted that Radio Pakistan Peshawar station director Tufail Ahmad recorded a supplementary statement identifying the suspects following forensic findings.
- The Punjab Forensic Science Agency and Nadra evaluated video clips and profile pictures following a December 12, 2025 request by attorney Shabbir Hussain Gigyani, concluding that facial features and identification details matched the suspects.
- During the proceedings, senior lawyer Shabbir Hussain Gigyani represented the Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation, public prosecutor Manzoor Alam Khan appeared for the state, and advocate Ali Zaman represented the accused.
- PTI figures contested the authenticity of the recordings, asserting they did not depict the events of May 10, 2023, which occurred after the arrest of PTI founder Imran Khan. Additional technical parameters of the forensic tests are not specified in the source; please check the official notice.
Why it matters
The warrants mark a notable development in the judicial proceedings regarding damage to state broadcasting infrastructure, according to Dawn. Sohail Afridi, who was made nonfunctional after governor's rule was declared in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, currently has a separate petition pending in the Peshawar High Court regarding his alleged illegal detention or enforced disappearance. The court adjourned the case until the next hearing on November 4.
Source: Dawn - Home · Published October 29, 2026 · Photo by Sasun Bughdaryan on Unsplash
