ISLAMABAD: An Islamabad district and sessions court on Wednesday issued a non-bailable arrest warrant for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister (CM) Sohail Afridi over his repeated failure to appear in a case involving alleged misleading statements against state institutions.

Senior Civil Judge Abbas Shah issued the warrant after Afridi did not attend the hearing despite being summoned by the court. Taking notice of his continuous non-appearance, the court ordered his arrest and production before the court.

The court adjourned further proceedings in the case until February 10.

The National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) had registered a case against the KP chief minister under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca), accusing him of making statements that allegedly harmed the reputation of state institutions.

In addition to the cybercrime case, CM Afridi is facing proceedings in an anti-terrorism court over his alleged role in the November 26 protest in Islamabad.

KP chief minister is also facing a case before the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) over an alleged violation of the code of conduct during a recent by-election for a National Assembly seat in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

A day earlier, the Peshawar High Court (PHC) restrained the ECP from taking any action or issuing a final order against the CM Afridi in a case related to a notice served over alleged threats to government officials during the Haripur by-election.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Syed Arshad Ali and Justice Faheem Wali heard the writ petition filed by Chief Minister Sohail Afridi. His counsel Bashir Khan Wazir appeared before the court and argued that the ECP had taken notice of a speech delivered by the chief minister during a public gathering, alleging that he had threatened government officials, The News reported on Wednesday.

The counsel maintained that the speech in question was delivered outside the constituency where the National Assembly by-election was being held, and that the chief minister was on a province-wide tour announcing development projects. Despite this, the ECP issued a notice and initiated proceedings against him.

During the hearing, Justice Arshad Ali asked the petitioner’s counsel whether the ECP’s decision had been received. The lawyer responded that the decision had just been received and was available with a supplementary application. The court summoned the record of the ECP decision and briefly adjourned the hearing.