Politicians from former Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan’s PTI party have been detained after President Asif Ali Zardari imposed emergency rule and suspended the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Sunday.
Government minister Talal Chaudhry said the province’s chief minister, Khan ally Sohail Afridi, and some cabinet members were taken into preventive custody at the chief minister’s residence in Peshawar. He said those with cases against them would be charged and tried, while others would be released. Khan’s three sisters and hundreds of his supporters were also detained before a planned march to Islamabad.
The federal government said it acted because the provincial administration had failed to tackle Islamist militancy in the province, which borders Afghanistan. PTI rejected that explanation, saying emergency rule was intended to stop supporters marching on the capital to demand Khan’s release. Khan aide Shaukat Yousafzai condemned the detentions and called for the politicians to be freed.
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