The Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Election Commission has issued arrest warrant for Ali Amin Gandapur the PTI leader who is now nominated for the coveted slot of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister and directed the official concerned to present him for the boy on Feb 28. It is a case related to violating the code of conduct defined for the AJK Legislative Assembly held in July 2021 after a complaint was filed over the issue. The AJK Election Commission, in this connection, has sent a letter to the Dera Ismail Khan deputy commissioner, directing to present the accused on the next hearing. Gandapur was a federal cabinet member in the PTI government back then and held the portfolio of Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit-Baltistan minister. That’s why he was assigned the task of running the election campaign in the state.

But his presence and some alleged actions meant to influence the electorate triggered a controversy, forcing the AJK Election Commission to order him leave the state. During the election campaign, a video also went viral in which the security guards of Gandapur could be seen resorting to aerial firing. However, Gandapur and other PTI leaders had accused the PML-N supporters of attacking the convoy and described the aerial firing as an act of self-defence. The arrest warrant comes after the police in Lahore relaunched their efforts of arresting those involved in the May 9 violence. Gandapur is one of the nominated persons along with Mian Aslam Iqbal and others who have been declared as proclaimed offenders by an anti-terrorism court.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)