Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi on Wednesday claimed that his security detail had apprehended a man allegedly sent to kill him. Gujranwala Police, however, refuted the claim, saying the detained man was a constable deployed for the chief minister’s security.

The KP chief minister has been visiting Punjab since Monday to mobilise party supporters ahead of the PTI’s nationwide protest scheduled for Sept 27.

Earlier on Wednesday, Afridi issued a video statement, which he said was recorded shortly before 5am, giving his version of events.

The KP CM alleged that hurdles were created during his stay in Sialkot, with power supplies cut off and the electricity generators at two residences he visited “ruined”. He subsequently travelled to Wazirabad.

“They had sent an assassin after us with the intention to kill. He was in civil clothes. When we arrived in Wazirabad, my security team apprehended this armed individual, recovered a pistol from him, and handed him over to the local SHO (station house officer),” he claimed.

Afridi reiterated his stance in an X post at 5:49am, saying his security team handed the “bearded man” over to SHO Saqlain after apprehending him.

The KP CM recalled that he was supposed to spend the night in Sialkot, but the electricity was “cut off”. He added that power at two other locations was also disconnected, after which he travelled to Wazirabad.

“Now, the electricity here has also been cut off. I cannot go anywhere else from here now,” the chief minister lamented.

However, in separate statements, Gujranwala Police and Wazirabad City police station said the man was Constable Muqadas Ali, who had been deployed on security duty for Afridi.

Gujranwala Police said the constable was “subjected to severe physical assault by members of the chief minister’s protection team”.

“Importantly, Constable Muqadas Ali was allegedly assaulted in the presence of the SHO City Wazirabad, who intervened and after considerable effort, managed to rescue the constable. The SHO’s presence can also be clearly seen in footage and images from the scene,” the statement said.

The police said the “misrepresentation of facts” and the constable’s “portrayal as a killer is a matter of serious concern”.

According to Gujranwala Police, following the incident, “claims portraying Constable Ali as a ‘killer’ emerged from representatives” of the KP CM.

“These claims misrepresent the facts, despite his identity having already been established at the scene and his departmental identity card having been presented.”

The police asserted that “any baseless and factually incorrect portrayal of its personnel is unacceptable”.

“Misrepresenting facts and portraying a police officer deployed on official duty as a killer is strongly condemnable,” it added.

“It is a matter of serious concern that, after the incident, the constable was allegedly portrayed as a ‘murderer’, despite his identity and official duty being established at the spot,” the statement from Wazirabad City police said.

Punjab Inf­ormation Minister Azma Bokhari also reiterated the police’s stance.

“God knows why such fits of madness strike them as soon as they reach Wazirabad,” she quipped.

On Nov 3, 2022, during PTI’s long march in Wazirabad, former premier Imran Khan and several others were injured in a gun attack, while one worker had lost his life. In 2025, a man was handed life imprisonment for the attack, while two others were acquitted.

Punjab visit

Wednesday was not the first episode of claims and counterclaims during the KP CM’s Punjab visit.

On Monday night, Afridi alleged he was “abducted” by authorities in Lahore and later “thrown” by the roadside — a claim the Punjab government swiftly denied.

In a video shared by Bokhari, Afridi could be seen voluntarily walking towards and boarding the police vehicle. He then refuses to dismount, while an individual can be heard asking the chief minister to “please leave the vehicle”.

Afridi turned his Lahore visit into a full-fledged political showdown, lashing out at the Punjab government, refusing security and vowing to rid the country of “fake rulers” through a nationwide street movement on September 27.

Speaking on Tuesday, CM Afridi alleged that Punjab police had blocked routes, arrested party workers and removed tents from a protest camp.

On its part, the Punjab government has imposed a ban on gatherings across the province from September 13 to 17.

District authorities had also issued preventive detention orders against dozens of PTI workers under Section 3 of the Maintenance of Public Order, including 31 in one Punjab notification and a further 14 in Toba Tek Singh.

Additional input from Asif Chaudhry