ISLAMABAD: Parliamentary Affairs Minister Tariq Fazal Chaudhry on Monday accused the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government of not cooperating with the federal government in the ongoing fight against terrorism, saying the provincial administration’s alleged disengagement was causing serious losses to the national effort against militancy.
Speaking to Geo News at the Parliament House, the federal minister said the PTI-led provincial government was not standing with state institutions, while Chief Minister Sohail Afridi was not cooperating in efforts to prevent terrorism.
Chaudhry claimed that three provinces were following Pakistan’s policy on Afghanistan, while KP was not.
His remarks came days after Information Minister Attaullah Tarar called on PTI to clarify its position on Pakistan and Afghanistan amid deadly terrorist attacks in the province.
Tarar had accused the PTI-led KP government of refusing to take ownership of counterterrorism operations and failing to take effective measures against terrorism. He had also alleged that PTI had facilitated terrorists over the past 12 years, describing the party as a “B-team” of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
‘Emergency option under consideration’
Chaudhry said the federal government was considering imposing an emergency in KP in view of the prevailing situation.
The development comes after fresh government-opposition talks aimed at averting PTI’s planned October 4 march towards Islamabad ended in deadlock overnight between Saturday and Sunday.
Both sides accused each other of undermining the negotiations. Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi had accused the KP chief minister of attempting to sabotage the talks, while PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja said the main reason for the failure was the federal government’s insistence that anti-terrorism actions initiated in KP be owned by the provincial government.
The PTI subsequently proceeded with its October 4 march towards Islamabad.
Speaking to Geo News, Chaudhry said the opposition’s priority was politics and the PTI founder, adding that although Imran Khan was his political opponent, he had no personal enmity with him.
He said meetings with the PTI founder had taken place in the past and that the door for dialogue between political parties remained open. However, he did not expect negotiations to resume in the near future.
The minister said the talks failed for two major reasons. According to him, the opposition delegation lacked the authority to take decisions, with the actual authority resting with the KP government.
He said the negotiators had informed the government that meeting some demands was beyond their authority.
Chaudhry said the second reason was a difference in priorities between the two sides.
He also warned that the PTI march would not be allowed to enter Islamabad under any circumstances.
Separately, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said the issue between the presidency and KP was “not politics but terrorism”.
In a post on X, Asif shared statistics concerning the security situation in KP over the past two years, claiming that around 6,200 terrorism incidents, 1,200 deaths and 37 suicide attacks involved Afghan nationals.
“Just this year, 14 suicide attacks have already occurred, the majority by Afghan nationals,” he said.
The defence minister further claimed that there was no shortage of funds for the province, but alleged that corruption and weak governance in KP were diminishing their impact.
