ISLAMABAD: PTI founder Imran Khan has claimed that Khyber Pakh­tunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur was “picked up” by the military after the Sangjani rally and he is “showing grace” by not speaking on the issue.

Mr Khan’s remarks have led credence to the doubts being raised over Mr Gndapur’s whereabouts following his scathing speech at the rally on Sunday.

The issue remained shrouded in mystery as PTI leaders, including the KP government spokesperson, feared Mr Gandapur had been taken into custody as they were unable to contact him.

According to media reports, the KP CM reached Peshawar on Tuesday and told a party meeting the next day that he was busy with official meetings and party leaders couldn’t contact him because of the jammers installed there.

Says KP CM showing grace by not divulging details; backs his proposal for direct talks with Kabul

In a rather unsavoury riposte, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, while speaking in the National Assembly, quoted media reports which claimed that the KP CM was in the custody of intelligence officials and was “seeking pardon”.

During his conversation with reporters after the accountability court’s proceedings on Friday, Mr Khan was asked about the alleged disappearance of the KP CM.

Mr Khan confirmed his party’s chief minister was taken into custody and “everyone knows who has the ability to pick someone up in such a fashion”.

Mr Gandapur is showing grace by not revealing what happened to him, the PTI founder said.

He also endorsed Mr Gandapur’s proposal for holding direct talks with the Afghan Taliban on the issue of terrorism. Earlier this week, the KP CM expressed his intentions to bypass the federal government and send a delegation to Kabul to speak to the Afghan Taliban government for their help in bringing peace to KP.

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The statement provoked strong reactions from the Foreign Office and the Centre government, who reminded Mr Gandapur that foreign policy was a federal subject.

“I fully support the stance of Ali Amin Gandapur, he is absolutely correct”, Mr Khan said, adding the federal government should “support” the KP CM as dialogue is the “only solution to end terrorism”.

He added that Mr Gandapur’s proposal “could not be ignored” as he is speaking “for the sake of the country”.

When a reporter asked him if the Foreign Office was the appropriate forum for dialogues, Mr Khan replied that KP is the province most affected by terrorism.

He criticised Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari for not even visiting Afghanistan once during his tenure as the foreign minister.

Hundreds of police officials have been martyred in terrorist attacks, and they are now protesting and “may revolt” if correct decisions are not made.

The province has been suffering from the war against terrorism for the past 24 years, and our first priority should be to eradicate this menace.

Mr Khan expressed the apprehension that the economy would collapse if terrorism was not eliminated.

The PTI founder also stressed the need for mending ties with Afghanistan for eliminating terrorism.

Published in Dawn, September 14th, 2024