PTI’s Junaid Akbar, lawmakers detained during Gilgit-Baltistan poll campaign

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa President Junaid Akbar Khan was arrested by the Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) Police at Hunza while campaigning for the upcoming elections, according to party leaders and officials. Ahead of the general elections scheduled in G-B on June 7, Akbar was visiting various areas of the region as part of the party’s election campaign when he was detained along with Members of the National Assembly Saleemur Rehman and Syed Mehboob Shah.  Read: Senate, NA to meet on June 5 for budget sessions Speaking after the incident, Akbar said he was told to leave Gilgit because he did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC). “I was told that since I do not have an NOC, I should leave Gilgit,” he said, questioning, “Is Gilgit-Baltistan not part of Pakistan?” Reacting to the arrests, PTI Information Secretary Sheikh Waqas Akram strongly condemned the detention of Akbar and other party leaders in G-B. He termed the move “a failed attempt to suppress political activities and influence the elections”, and urged the National Assembly speaker to intervene immediately to ensure the release of the detained leaders. Strongly condemn the shameful expulsion of PTI leaders from Gilgit-Baltistan! Authorities are blocking them from campaigning with baseless excuses. This is pure fear of PTI’s popularity and a desperate attempt to impose Form 47 results through rigging. Stop political… — Sheikh Waqas Akram (@SheikhWaqqas) May 29, 2026 “Democracy cannot be silenced through arrests and pressure,” he said. Responding to the development, K-P Chief Minister Suhail Afridi warned that he would personally travel to G-B if the detained parliamentarians were not released soon. Also Read: PTI's Junaid Akbar resigns from PAC chairmanship He said questions would be raised regarding the alleged mistreatment by the “puppet government” in G-B and those seeking to form a government there. “These attitudes are harming Pakistan and increasing hatred,” the chief minister said, adding that denying PTI a level playing field in the elections through “force and oppression” was damaging the democratic system. He further said that the G-B chief minister was not responding to his calls and described the situation as “undemocratic and unpolitical”. “We will not allow Gilgit-Baltistan to become a no-go area,” he added. K-P Minister for Higher Education and Local Government Meena Khan Afridi also condemned the arrest, calling it “regrettable” that Akbar was detained during the election campaign. He said harassment of political workers and leaders ran counter to democratic values and warned that suppressing dissent by force was not a positive sign for democracy. Afridi demanded that Akbar be produced immediately and called for a transparent and free political environment for the G-B elections. He also condemned what he described as “political victimisation and undemocratic tactics”, urging law enforcement agencies to act in accordance with the Constitution and the law. Provincial Information Minister Shafee Jan also criticised the arrests, calling them “the worst example of political revenge”. He said the detention of elected lawmakers was against democratic norms and amounted to disrespecting the public mandate. “Taking part in an election campaign is the constitutional, legal and democratic right of every political party,” he said. Jan alleged that while other political parties were being allowed to campaign freely in G-B, the PTI was being obstructed. He questioned why the G-B government was “afraid” to the extent that elected lawmakers were being arrested. “Such tactics cannot weaken the resolve of PTI workers,” he said, adding that the party would continue to contest elections despite what he termed political revenge. He further said the people of G-B would reject the politics of political victimisation through the power of the vote. “The government has become so fearful of Imran Khan’s public popularity that it has resorted to such tactics ahead of the elections,” he added.

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