KP Emergency Ministers say government spent a month seeking provincial cooperation

The federal government spent a month trying to bring the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) government on board before imposing emergency measures, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said on Sunday, citing failed negotiations and a worsening security situation.

President Asif Ali Zardari approved Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s recommendation to impose emergency rule in the province, following concerns about rising militant violence and what federal ministers described as a lack of provincial cooperation in counterterrorism efforts.

Speaking at a news conference alongside Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar and other officials, the ministers defended the decision and outlined the constitutional measures introduced by the federal government.

Azam said the president had declared an emergency under Articles 232(1) and 234(1) of the Constitution. He said the prime minister had briefed the president on the circumstances behind the decision and that the K-P governor had submitted a report to the federal government.

Naqvi said he had remained in contact with the provincial administration throughout the preceding month. Discussions had covered counterterrorism, a planned long march and other political matters, he added.

The interior minister said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had been scheduled to travel to New York on September 17. Before his departure, the government had planned to hold a meeting with opposition representatives on September 15 or 16.

According to Naqvi, the government proposed forming a committee and arranging the meeting but received no response. Contacts continued despite the lack of a reply, he said.

Naqvi added that he had urged the president and prime minister to engage the K-P government. A draft proposal was revised four times the following day, but officials later received a new version when they believed the matter had nearly been settled.

He said the government made further attempts to reach an understanding with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders. The last contact took place at 11.45pm on Saturday, he said, adding that he had told them an agreement was still possible.

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“I told them that even at that point, something could still be done, but there was no response,” Naqvi said.

He maintained that the federal government had not demanded that PTI abandon its planned sit-in. Its principal concern, he said, had been terrorism. Naqvi added that the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), rather than his ministry, had proposed postponing the sit-in.

Naqvi said Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman had also met the prime minister during the negotiations.

The interior minister said the security situation in K-P had deteriorated to the point that residents in some districts were afraid to venture outdoors after sunset. He also cited the death of an Election Commission official the previous day as an example of the province’s security challenges.

Naqvi said he had held several meetings with K-P Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, with counterterrorism a central topic. He claimed that when he asked Afridi about strengthening police forces in affected districts, the chief minister cited a lack of funds.

Naqvi said he had offered federal financial support to address the shortage. He further claimed that provincial representatives had agreed during negotiations that emergency measures should be introduced in certain districts.

The minister also said the federal government had struggled to secure public support for its position. He claimed provincial representatives had expressed reservations about publicly releasing photographs of their meetings, but insisted he had never asked them to pose for pictures or make them public.

Naqvi described the emergency decision as difficult but necessary after repeated attempts to reach an agreement. He said 518 police personnel had been killed over the previous 18 months.

He argued that the federal government could not continue losing security personnel while the provincial administration failed to take responsibility for counterterrorism efforts.

“Terrorism cannot be fought alone under any circumstances; it requires a collective effort,” he said.

Naqvi added that the situation might have been different had the provincial government accepted the proposals put forward the previous night.

Law Minister Azam defended the constitutional basis for the measures, saying the president had acted on the prime minister’s advice after receiving the governor’s report.

He claimed terrorist incidents in K-P had increased by 196 per cent over the previous two to two-and-a-half years. Casualties, damage to vehicles and attacks on security personnel, police officers and religious leaders had also risen, he said.

Azam argued that the Constitution allowed federal intervention in provincial affairs when the law and order situation warranted it.

He said an 11-member advisory committee had been established and a secretariat set up to cover 12 districts. Reports from those districts would be sent directly to the federal government, he added.

According to the law minister, a council had also been established under the supervision of the additional chief secretary. He said officials holding relevant positions had been rendered inactive and that the military had been deployed under Article 245 of the Constitution.

Information Minister Attaullah Tarar issued stronger criticism of the K-P administration, accusing it of maintaining links with militants and enabling people responsible for attacks on civilians and Pakistan’s armed forces.

He said intelligence agencies and law enforcement bodies had reported a serious deterioration in security across the province. Attaullah also alleged that political leaders from several parties had been targeted and that militants were receiving safe passage because of their links with the provincial government.

Recounting a visit to a hospital in Kohat, the information minister said he had met injured people who urged authorities to protect them from militant attacks.

He accused those responsible for security in the province of treating militants as partners instead of confronting them.

The allegations against the provincial government were made by federal ministers as they defended the emergency measures. Their statements did not, by themselves, independently establish the claims of political links with militants.

The decision marks a major escalation in the federal government’s response to the security situation in K-P, with officials arguing that constitutional intervention became necessary after negotiations failed. The measures are likely to intensify the political dispute between the federal administration and the PTI-led provincial government.