A growing number of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-linked leaders and student activists are reportedly going into hiding as arrests and detentions intensify in parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP).
The reports have fuelled concerns within PTI ranks, with several party-linked figures said to be either detained or uncontactable.
Among those named is Abdul Salam Afridi, the PTI lawmaker from Mardan’s PK-58 constituency, who is reportedly among those taken into custody. The circumstances and timing of his alleged detention remain unclear.
Several activists associated with the Insaf Students Federation (ISF) have also reportedly gone missing or been detained.
They include Amir Marwat, president of ISF University Campus in Peshawar; Aman Ullah, former chief organiser of ISF at the Agriculture University of Peshawar; Abdul Basit, former general secretary of ISF at Islamia College Peshawar; Junaid Zada, former vice-president of ISF at the Agriculture University of Peshawar; and Shafqat Ullah, identified as an ISF member.
Party supporters have also claimed that several ISF office-bearers are among those detained, while some activists have reportedly remained uncontactable for around 48 hours.
The reports have raised questions about the whereabouts of a number of PTI-linked figures as political tensions continue in the province.
However, the reported arrests and detentions have not been independently verified.
No official list of detainees has been made public, and it remains unclear whether the individuals named were detained in separate incidents or as part of a wider operation.
Police and government authorities have yet to publicly confirm the full scale of the reported detentions.
The developments come as PTI continues to face pressure over its political and organisational activities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, with several party workers and supporters reportedly keeping a low profile amid the ongoing crackdown.
