LAHORE: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi arrived in Lahore on Friday on a three-day visit, during which he is scheduled to hold a series of political meetings.
Accompanied by a delegation, the KP chief minister entered the city after crossing the Ravi Toll Plaza, marking his formal arrival in the provincial capital.
During the visit, Afridi is expected to attend a session of the Punjab Assembly and meet PTI’s parliamentary members in the province. Sources said the Punjab Assembly Secretariat has approved the entry of the KP chief minister and his delegation into the legislature, with the complete list shared with assembly security.
According to sources, the delegation includes provincial ministers, cabinet members and parliamentarians. Afridi is also scheduled to meet opposition members inside the Punjab Assembly and address them.
The KP chief minister is expected to address the Lahore High Court Bar on Saturday and visit several locations in the city, including Liberty Chowk.
PTI sources said Afridi may also meet senior party leaders, including Chaudhry Pervez Elahi, Mian Mahmoodur Rashid, Hammad Azhar and Ejaz Chaudhry, besides holding meetings with senior journalists and anchorpersons. He is also expected to visit incarcerated PTI leaders at Kot Lakhpat Jail.
In a statement, Punjab Assembly Deputy Speaker Zaheer Iqbal Channer said the KP chief minister would be welcomed if he visited the provincial legislature.
The visit comes amid signs of possible dialogue between the PML-N-led federal government and the opposition alliance to ease political tensions. The possibility of renewed talks emerged on Wednesday when Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif offered dialogue on the floor of the National Assembly.
Later, leaders of the Tehreek-e-Tahafuz-e-Ayin-e-Pakistan (TTAP) said they were ready for talks on a range of national issues following a meeting chaired by Mahmood Khan Achakzai, attended by PTI leader Asad Qaiser, Allama Raja Nasir Abbas, BNP-M leader Sajid Tareen and Khokhar.
