Sohail Afridi’s nomination meant to ‘promote and protect’ terror networks, claims Tarar

• Information Minister brands PTI founder ‘chief sponsor of terrorists’, for allegedly facilitating militants during PTI rule
• Claims KP CM Ali Amin Gandapur removed for failing to meet PTI founder’s ‘expectations’
• Alleges National Action Plan was dismantled under PTI, lauding army’s counterterror role
• Ikhtiar Wali accuses PTI of corruption, poor governance in KP

ISLAMABAD: Information Minister Ataullah Tarar on Thursday accused Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan of being the “chief sponsor” of terrorists, alleging that he facilitated their return and shelter in Pakistan during his tenure and continues to support their network through loyalists in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP).

“The PTI founder’s nomination of Sohail Afridi as Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa-designate aims at “completely supporting and promoting” terrorists and their facilitators,” Information Minister Atta Tarar said while addressing a joint press conference in Islamabad alongside Coordinator to the Prime Minister on Information and K-P Affairs Ikhtiar Wali Khan.

وفاقی وزیر اطلاعات و نشریات عطاء اللہ تارڑ نے کہا ہے کہ جیل میں بیٹھے شخص کے دور میں دہشت گردوں کو واپس لا کر ملک کو بہت نقصان پہنچایا گیا، تحریک انصاف کا انتشار پسند ٹولہ دہشت گردوں کا سہولت کار ہے نہتے شہریوں پر حملہ کرنے والے اور مساجد نشانہ بنانے والے کسی رعایت کے مستحق نہیں. pic.twitter.com/VKBYpQO0kG

— APP (@appcsocialmedia) October 9, 2025

“The person sitting in jail is the chief sponsor of terrorists,” he said, adding that those behind recent unrest and security incidents “received direct support” from the former premier. “These facilitators will not succeed in destabilising Pakistan.”

The information minister claimed that Imran Khan had repeatedly described militants as “good people” and had long advocated for negotiations with them. “That very person—and the one currently in jail—brought terrorists back to Pakistan and settled them. To this day, their facilitation continues,” he alleged, lamenting that “the entire disruptive faction of PTI acts as facilitators of terrorism.”

پاکستان کی سیکیورٹی پالیسی اسلام آباد میں بنتی ہے اور آئندہ بھی یہیں بنے گی، عطاء اللہ تارڑ#Pakistan #Islamabad #SecurityPolicy #AttaullahTarar #NationalSecurity #PakPolitics #Government #NewsUpdate #APPNews #PakistanNews pic.twitter.com/mBv78i6vCG

— APP (@appcsocialmedia) October 9, 2025

Tarar also accused former K-P chief minister Ali Amin Gandapur of failing to carry out “such facilitation to the satisfaction” of Imran Khan, which he suggested led to Gandapur’s removal. “He [Imran] wanted someone close to the declared fugitive Murad Saeed and sympathetic towards terrorist networks,” he said, adding that Afridi’s nomination reflected that mindset.

He further said that militants were actively enabled under PTI’s rule, undermining the country’s counterterrorism policy. “During PTI’s tenure, the National Action Plan was practically dismantled, weakening the fight against terrorism,” Tarar claimed.

لندن کی عدالت کا فیصلہ شر پسند عناصر کے منہ پر زوردار طمانچہ ہے، عطاء اللہ تارڑ#AttaullahTarar #LondonCourt #Pakistan #APPNews #Justice #Politics #Government #NationalNews #Islamabad #PakistanNews pic.twitter.com/ONghBZR4fj

— APP (@appcsocialmedia) October 9, 2025

Referring to the recent London court ruling against PTI, Tarar said the verdict amounted to a “political defeat” for the party and vindicated the state’s stance that those attempting to destabilise the country would face consequences. “This ruling is a resounding slap in the face of those who tried to malign Pakistan’s institutions,” he said.

The minister said that peace had been restored through military operations such as Zarb-e-Azb and Radd-ul-Fasaad, which “broke the back of terrorism,” while PTI’s policies had reversed those gains. He lauded the security forces, saying they “stand like an iron wall against terrorism,” and that their “sacrifices will be written in golden words.”

Reiterating the government’s stance, Tarar said Pakistan’s security policy “is made in Islamabad and will remain so,” rejecting any suggestion that it is influenced by external actors, including Afghanistan. “Those who attack civilians or the state deserve no mercy,” he declared.

ریاست مخالف بیانیہ بانیِ تحریکِ انصاف کا ایجنڈا ہے، اختیار ولی خان#IkhtiyarWaliKhan #PTI #PakistanPolitics #AntiStateNarrative #PMLN #NationalUnity #Pakistan #APPNews #PoliticalStatement #Islamabad pic.twitter.com/jnkWPvdRuI

— APP (@appcsocialmedia) October 9, 2025

Ikhtiar Wali Khan also criticised PTI’s governance record, saying that changes in provincial leadership were a “routine political matter” but that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa continued to suffer from poor administration and rising militancy.

He claimed that the “Kohistan scandal” had exposed massive corruption under PTI’s rule and accused the party of pushing the country “to the verge of bankruptcy.” “Imran Khan has only worked against the state and its institutions,” he said, adding that under the current government, “Pakistan’s economy is now recovering.”