Turning a blind eye: K-P claims its request to transfer Dr Shakil Afridi being ignored

PTI-led government says it will not be responsible for any mishaps.

PESHAWAR: The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government maintains the centre has repeatedly ignored its request to hand over Dr Shakil Afridi to the political administration of Khyber Agency.

Afridi was arrested for helping the US track down Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad in May 2011. However, charges were not framed against him in this case and he was later sentenced for supporting militant organisations in Khyber Agency. After his conviction under the Frontier Crimes Regulation, Afridi has been kept at Central Prison Peshawar.



Speaking to The Express Tribune, Adviser to the Chief Minister on Prisons Malik Qasim Khan Khattak said the provincial government has informed the federal government it would not be responsible for any mishaps in the matter.

According to the CM’s adviser, Afridi has been kept under high security at Central Prison Peshawar due to the nature of his crime. Moreover, police personnel are prepared to tackle any untoward situation which may arise at the prison.

However, he insisted that “high value” prisoners like Afridi cannot be kept at the prison without the legal responsibility of the K-P government. “He should be shifted from K-P to Khyber Agency,” he added, “This is because Fata comes under the jurisdiction of the federal government.”

The CM’s adviser also claimed Afridi has been isolated from other jail inmates.

“We have asked the federal government to keep Afridi at another prison,” he said. “We have suggested Afridi be shifted to Attock or Balahisar Fort as no ordinary prisoners are kept there.”

The CM’s advisor said the provincial government would implement a series of measures to enhance security in prisons across K-P.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 11^th, 2014.