KOHAT, PAKISTAN — Former senator Shamim Afridi has publicly challenged the official narrative surrounding the death of his son, former state minister Abbas Khan Afridi, asserting on Monday that his son was killed by a bomb explosion, not a gas leak blast. He has demanded the establishment of a judicial committee, headed by a Peshawar High Court judge, to thoroughly investigate the incident.
Meanwhile, the death toll from the explosion at Abbas Afridi’s Azeem Bagh hujra has risen to five, following the Monday demise of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) district secretary general Javed Iqbal Afridi at the Kharian Burns Centre. Iqbal Afridi had sustained severe burns in the incident, initially attributed to a “gas explosion.”
During a news conference, Mr. Afridi expressed skepticism about the gas leak theory, questioning how “all concrete walls could collapse in a gas blast.” He stated, “No sane person would believe that the incident was caused by a gas leak,” and revealed that he had left the hujra just 15 minutes before the explosion and detected no smell of gas.
The former lawmaker also voiced dissatisfaction with the police investigation, noting that only the SHO of Bilitang police station, rather than a senior officer, had visited him and the site despite the high-profile nature of his son’s death.
Mr. Afridi further alleged that the explosion was part of a pattern of attacks against his family, citing previous incidents including assaults on his CNG station and multiple rocket and hand grenade strikes on his house. He lamented that despite lodging FIRs for these attacks, police had made no arrests. He also refuted claims that the recent incident occurred near the Azeem Bagh hujra.
Addressing the arrest of his other son, Amjid Afridi – a three-time MPA and two-time minister – in connection with the Malik Asad murder case, Shamim Afridi claimed that “touts had been hired” to provide incriminating statements.
He maintained that Malik Asad’s family, with whom they had good relations, had requested him not to hold the news conference as talks were ongoing regarding Amjid Afridi’s arrest and implication in the case. The former senator underscored his family’s “political and social track record,” asserting they were incapable of even a minor crime.
