PESHAWAR:
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi has formally lodged a protest with Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, alleging that he was subjected to deliberate and humiliating treatment during his visit to Lahore, in a violation of constitutional dignity and inter-provincial respect.
In a two-page protest letter sent to the Punjab chief minister, Afridi said the manner in which his visit was handled was neither an administrative lapse nor an accidental occurrence, but a conscious and intentional act.
He wrote that what transpired amounted to a direct affront to a constitutional office and damaged the spirit of respect between federating units.
“I write to you with deep concern and strong exception to the manner in which my recent visit to the Province of Punjab was handled, and the events that deliberately unfolded during and after the visit.”
Recalling the sequence of events, the K-P chief minister said the actions he faced were neither accidental nor administrative.
“It reflects conduct that is wholly incompatible with the dignity of constitutional office and the spirit of inter-provincial respect,” he said.
Afridi reminded the Punjab CM that he undertook the visit in his official capacity as chief minister, but said the reception fell far below constitutional norms.
“Regrettably, the treatment accorded to me was marked by discourtesy, unnecessary hostility, and protocol deviations that cannot be justified under any accepted standard of inter-provincial engagement,” he said.
The K-P chief minister said the Punjab government adopted what he described as an extraordinary and excessive security posture during the visit, including sweeping detentions and visible enforcement theatrics, which he termed “a message of intimidation rather than cooperation”.
He complained that “such measures were neither proportionate nor warranted and conveyed an intent that went well beyond legitimate security considerations”.
Afridi further recalled that “even public places, including food streets and markets, were completely sealed, and whole blackouts were affected, venues denied, paining the common citizens of Lahore at this expense”.
“Free access, as provided for in the Constitution, was even denied at Motorway rest areas,” added the letter.
The K-P CM also took note of a “coordinated and malicious social media campaign that accompanied and followed” his visit.
“Serious insinuations- specifically linking with narcotics were injected into public discourse,” Afridi said.
“These allegations were amplified through accounts widely perceived to be aligned with, or operating under the umbrella of, the Government of Punjab,” he alleged.
“Let me state this clearly: the use of state-linked digital platforms to circulate or amplify defamatory insinuations against a sitting Chief Minister of another province is unacceptable, irresponsible, and institutionally indefensible.”
“Allegations of such gravity cannot be floated through innuendo or suggestion; they require evidence, jurisdiction, and lawful process,” he told the Punjab CM.
“Anything short of that constitutes character assassination,” he added.
Afridi said that “taken together – protocol degradation, excessive policing optics, and synchronised digital vilification – the pattern is too consistent to be dismissed as coincidental”.
He alleged that the events reflected “planning and intent, aimed at humiliation rather than engagement”.
The K-P chief minister warned that “such actions undermine federal harmony, erode public trust in provincial institutions, and [set] a dangerous precedent where constitutional officeholders are targeted through insinuation rather than addressed through formal channels.”
He termed the conduct “beneath the status of a provincial government” and said it damaged the “collective credibility of federating units”.
“I place on record my strong protest and rejection of the treatment meted out to me and of the defamatory narratives propagated during this episode.”
“I expect that your government will ensure that such conduct – administrative as well as digital – is neither repeated nor normalised, and that accountability is enforced where required,” he said.
Punjab Assembly speaker
Punjab Assembly Speaker Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan announced that the report of the committee formed to probe the chaos, hooliganism, and physical clashes during the visit of the K-P chief minister will be handed over to law enforcement agencies for further action.
Speaking on the matter, the Khan alleged that under the guise of political party workers, foreign terrorists entered Jinnah House while armed. He further claimed that the intruders were carrying a chemical substance used to set the premises completely ablaze.
Addressing a news conference at the Punjab Assembly, Speaker Khan emphasized that the seriousness of the incident warrants a thorough investigation by law enforcement agencies to identify the perpetrators and bring them to justice.
He said that those who do not respect the sanctity of sacred places like Makkah and Madinah cannot be expected to respect democracy or the Punjab Assembly. He stated that individuals whose names and CNICs were not included in the official guest list were involved in violence and manhandling, which would not be tolerated under any circumstances.
