Former senator Taj Muhammad Afridi lost his life in a tragic road accident on the M-1 Motorway on Friday after his vehicle encountered a mechanical malfunction. The incident took place near the Colonel Sher Khan Interchange as Afridi was en route from Islamabad to Peshawar.
Motorway police arrived promptly at the scene and reported that the Jeep-style vehicle suddenly suffered a technical fault, causing the driver to lose control. Afridi sustained fatal injuries and died instantly, while his driver escaped with minor wounds.
An inquiry into the precise cause of the mechanical failure is currently underway, with authorities investigating the circumstances surrounding the crash.
Taj Afridi served as a member of the Senate of Pakistan from March 2015 until March 2021. Additionally, he held the position of caretaker provincial minister for relief, rehabilitation, and resettlement in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa from January to August 2023.
He was initially elected to the Senate in 2015 as an independent candidate representing the then Federally Administered Tribal Areas. In 2021, Afridi ran unsuccessfully for the Senate from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on a Balochistan Awami Party ticket. Over the years, he was affiliated with multiple political parties and most recently contested a Senate by-election in October 2025 as an independent candidate, which he also lost.