Sohail Afridi, Four Others Charged in 2023 Radio Pakistan Attack Case
PESHAWAR: The prosecution on Tuesday added Sohail Afridi, who was removed as chief minister with the imposition of governor’s rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and four others as accused in the May 2023 ransacking and torching of the Radio Pakistan building in Peshawar.
Submitting a supplementary charge sheet in an anti-terrorism court, the prosecution formally named the five men as accused. As Judge Wali Mohammad Khan was absent, the hearing was adjourned until October 28.
The investigation officer, DSP Khushal Khan, submitted the charge sheet to the district public prosecutor, who placed it on the court’s file. The court is already trying 75 accused in the case, including serving and former lawmakers.
Sohail Afridi among five charged in the Radio Pakistan case
The prosecution has now named Sohail Afridi, former provincial ministers Taimoor Saleem Jhagra and Kamran Bangash, PTI Peshawar district president Irfan Saleem and party activist Amir Khan Chamkani as accused.
The charge sheet rests on findings by the Punjab Forensic Science Agency (PFSA) and the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) on video clips purportedly showing the attack and on profile pictures of suspects.
Radio Pakistan Peshawar station director Tufail Ahmad recorded a supplementary statement nominating the five men, in light of the PFSA and Nadra findings.
The PFSA concluded that the facial features of the five men matched those of suspects seen allegedly rioting in the videos. Nadra’s report listed CNIC numbers apparently belonging to the five men, calling them probable matches for their profile pictures.
The charge sheet had been delayed, and the delay became a point of debate during the trial after the PFSA and Nadra submitted their forensic reports early this year. Last month the investigation officer filed a progress report, but the court directed him to produce the charge sheet instead.
A case running since the May 9 riots
The case goes back to May 10, 2023, when the Radio Pakistan building in Peshawar was ransacked and set on fire a day after the arrest of PTI founder Imran Khan. The FIR was registered at the East Cantonment police station on the complaint of the then SHO, Arbab Naeem Haider, under provisions of the Pakistan Penal Code and the Anti-Terrorism Act.
Forensic examination of the videos was ordered by the court on December 12, 2025, on an application by Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation’s lawyer Shabbir Hussain Gigyani, who maintained the clips showed the attack on the building. PTI leaders have questioned the authenticity of the footage, saying it does not show the May 10, 2023 attack.
The anti-terrorism court indicted 75 accused on multiple counts on June 3, 2025. All pleaded not guilty. Those facing trial include provincial minister Meena Khan Afridi, MNA Asif Khan, MPAs Fazal Ilahi Khan and Arbab Waseem, who left the PTI for PTI-Parliamentarians, and former MPAs Arbab Jehandad, Fida Gul and Wajid Khan.
Notably, the Afridi-led KP government had appointed Additional Advocate General Nomanul Haq Kakakhel in the case, a move that drew attention given that Afridi himself now stands accused.
Why the timing matters
The charge sheet lands days after the federal government imposed an emergency and governor’s rule across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, removing Afridi as chief minister. The opposition has denounced the move as an attempt to usurp the province’s mandate, while talks between the sides collapsed before the decision.
With the hearing adjourned to October 28, the case now proceeds against one of the PTI’s most prominent KP figures at a moment when the party’s provincial government has been swept aside.
What is the Radio Pakistan attack case?
On May 10, 2023, a day after Imran Khan’s arrest, protesters ransacked and torched the Radio Pakistan building in Peshawar. An FIR was registered the same day, and 75 accused were indicted in June 2025. All have pleaded not guilty.
Why has Sohail Afridi been charged now?
The prosecution filed a supplementary charge sheet after PFSA facial-matching and Nadra record checks linked Afridi and four others to video footage of the rioting. The station director’s supplementary statement also nominated the five men.
What happens next?
The anti-terrorism court adjourned the hearing to October 28 as the presiding judge was absent. The trial of the 75 accused continues alongside the proceedings against the five newly charged men.
