Peshawar High Court seeks Afridi reply over helicopter use in PTI march

Pakistan's Peshawar High Court on Thursday sought a response from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi on a petition alleging that government resources were being used for political activities, including the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf's ongoing long march.

A two-member bench headed by Chief Justice S M Atiq Shah issued the notice after the petitioner's counsel alleged that Afridi had used the official government helicopter to travel to Lakki Marwat in connection with the party's march from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to Islamabad, launched to press for the release of jailed PTI founder and former prime minister Imran Khan.

During the hearing, the counsel referred to a November 2025 judgment of the court that imposed restrictions on the use of government resources for such activities. After hearing the arguments, the court issued a notice to Afridi and sought his response to the allegations.

Khan, 73, has been in jail since 2023 and faces more than 100 cases, including corruption and charges linked to inciting violence. He is lodged at Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where the PTI is in power under Afridi, was the starting point of the long march. The protest caravan began from Lakki Marwat and is being led by Afridi and other PTI leaders, with the party saying it plans to take the march to the federal capital for a sit-in.

The PTI had initially planned to launch the march on September 27 but later postponed it to October 4. Among its main demands are an immediate meeting with Khan and permission for his personal doctors to examine him. The party has also sought the release of his sisters and supporters arrested ahead of the protest, a proper medical check-up for Khan's wife Bushra Bibi, and hearings in their cases without interference. The march came after two rounds of talks between PTI leaders and the federal government failed early Sunday over the party's demand for access to Khan before calling off the protest. According to informed sources, the government insisted that the protest be withdrawn before any meeting with Khan, while the PTI wanted the meeting first. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday invited the PTI for talks and urged it to call off the march, saying political issues should be resolved through dialogue. The federal government has also warned that the march will not be allowed to enter Islamabad, while security has been tightened and roads on the planned route have been blocked with shipping containers.

On Wednesday, Afridi said he would resist any policy against the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and would not allow another military operation in the province. Addressing participants in the PTI march in Khyber district, he said the recent talks with the federal government were political in nature and alleged that an "imposed mindset" wanted the provincial government to endorse another military operation. The case in the high court now centres on allegations of misuse of official resources as the PTI's protest move towards Islamabad continues.

With PTI Inputs

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