Over 24 hours after he went “missing” from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa House in Islamabad, KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur on Sunday addressed the provincial assembly, claiming he was “hiding” in KP House while police searched for him.
Hours before Gandapur’s reappearance, the KP Assembly declared him a “missing” person and demand the government produce him in the House within 24 hours. Dashing the narrative devised by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), however, Gandapur claimed he had spent an entire night “hiding” in KP House as police raided it four times.
Narrating the events leading up to his “disappearance,” Gandapur alleged that Islamabad’s inspector-general (IG) of police and paramilitary Rangers had “raided the KP House, sealed its gates, and misbehaved with staff and women.” Accusing the forces of opening fire on people within the premises and using tear-gas shells, he claimed they didn’t even have an FIR.
“They informed me there was an FIR but didn’t explain what it was for or the charges. I asked what crime I had committed, and told them if they wanted to arrest me, they could, as instructed by Imran Khan,” he said, adding he had remained in KP House all Saturday night, during which police had raided it four times.
“All the evidence is there against them. How dare he [IG] lay hands on the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government? We will avenge our disrespect,” he claimed, demanding the IG “fix” everything that was damaged in KP House. “My car was taken away, my guard was also taken away,” he claimed, maintaining the Islamabad IG would have to “appear on the floor of the KP Assembly and apologize for vandalizing KP House.” He vowed he would register a case against the Islamabad top cop.
Thanking PTI supporters for standing with party founder Imran Khan, he said he was proud of the House for supporting Khan’s fight. “This is a historic event where the government is coming together and attacking our party—they have exposed themselves,” he claimed. “They took our electoral symbol, then they abducted our people and forced them to defect, but none of them have won,” he said.
The KP chief minister also criticized authorities for delaying permission for PTI to hold public rallies. “They want us to hold rallies in cattle markets,” he said, lamenting that they were not livestock. He urged all institutions and political parties “to reform yourselves and never leave the true path for personal gains.” He concluded his speech by claiming some “positive” news would emerge in the coming days.
Gandapur’s ‘drama’
In a televised statement after Gandapur’s speech, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar claimed the KP chief minister had “staged a drama” through his disappearance. “Why was this drama staged? Why did you [Gandapur] first run away by abandoning your supporters without any assistance, then hide yourself, and then return to KP? Where were you for the last 24 hours?” he asked.
He said PTI supporters and authorities should both question Gandapur on why he tried to disrupt law and order in Islamabad, resulting in the loss of the precious life of a police constable.
Meanwhile, PTI Chairman Gohar Khan has claimed the PTI would continue its protest, without offering any definitive endpoint. PTI leader Asad Qaiser has similarly claimed the protest would continue until party founder Khan announced otherwise.