Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has claimed that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi and the party's provincial president, Junaid Akbar, have been arrested, framing the move as "political vendetta."

The political party, founded by former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan, strongly condemned the actions, according to a report by Geo News.

PTI spokesperson Sheikh Waqas Akram stated that the primary objective behind these arrests is to undermine the province's elected leadership and dismantle democratic institutions.

In a statement posted on social media platform X, he said, "The arrests of Chief Minister Sohail Afridi and Junaid Akbar expose the political nature of the federal government's actions. These measures were not taken to address security challenges; rather, their aim is to weaken PTI, paralyze Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's elected government, and disregard the democratic mandate of the region's people."

Meanwhile, government officials stated that individuals named in active arrest warrants were taken into custody to maintain law and order.

Speaking on Geo News' program Geo Pakistan, Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry said, "Those who do not have warrants against them in any case will be released."

Addressing a news conference in Islamabad, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said, "Some of them have been taken into preventive custody. Those with warrants in criminal cases will be dealt with according to the law, while the rest will be sent home."

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi added, "If we arrest anyone, we will announce it. We have nothing to hide."

On the other hand, strongly condemning the declaration of emergency and governor's rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan characterized the move as a "grave political error."

Following a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday (October 11), the federal government decided to invoke emergency measures under Articles 232 and 234 of the Constitution. President Asif Ali Zardari subsequently approved the cabinet's recommendation.

The federal government cited the "deteriorating security situation and the provincial government's failure to curb terrorism" as the primary grounds for the decision.

In a post on X, Gohar warned that the federal government's decision would undermine democratic rights and provincial autonomy.

Gohar stated that their party firmly condemns and completely rejects the decision, viewing it as an undemocratic move that the public will never accept.

He remarked that the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa hold a constitutional and legal right to their electoral mandate, adding that peace and stability cannot be achieved by disregarding that mandate, eroding provincial autonomy, or provoking conflict between the center and the province.