Government fuels rumors about KP governor’s government

ISLAMABAD:

Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar on Monday said the provision for governorship in a province was a constitutional option rather than a form of martial law, while accusing the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) of fueling political disorder.

Amid speculation that the federal government was weighing governor’s rule in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Tarar said Articles 232 to 234 of the Constitution explicitly permitted the move if circumstances warranted it.

He warned against the accumulation of political points and argued that national stability must take priority over partisan agendas. “If Pakistan exists, all of us exist,” he said, adding that the continuity of the democratic order would allow even the founder of the PTI to hope for a political return.

He said the PTI had weakened its own position by leaving parliament after the 2022 no-confidence motion, calling it a strategic misstep that left the party without institutional influence.

The Justice Minister warned that history does not forgive political miscalculations, insisting that democratic processes cannot function under coercion, threats or any attempt to attack the Federation using state resources.

Referring to past injustices – including the execution of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and the assassination of Benazir Bhutto – he stressed that political parties had not turned against the state even then, noting that “lines were never crossed” even when Nawaz Sharif was twice removed from office.

He noted that the PTI had filed more than 90 election petitions, most of which had been decided through established legal forums, and warned that circumventing constitutional mechanisms damaged political credibility and sent harmful signals to younger generations.

Information Minister Attaullah Tarar echoed this criticism in the House and said the jail meetings were meant for legal consultations, not for conspiring against national institutions or defaming the Pakistan Army on foreign platforms.

He accused PTI leaders of selective memory, recalling past comments directed at political opponents, and said political bitterness intensified during the PTI’s rule due to arrests, institutional clashes and actions that “created an intolerable environment.”

He said earlier political rivalries survived because leaders like Nawaz Sharif and Benazir Bhutto had upheld the Charter of Democracy. He insisted that illegal demands would not be accepted and criticized former accountability officials for generating hostility before leaving the country.

National Assembly member Noor Alam Khan warned that any attack on parliament would amount to an attack on the country’s 240 million citizens, and said disagreements should not become attacks on the state. He said patriotism was not exclusive to any party and inciting hostility towards parliament did not serve Pakistan’s interests.

Outside the House, ministers reiterated that the governor’s rule in KP remains under consideration. Attaullah Tarar told reporters that the option was constitutional and arose naturally when governance weakened.

Minister of State for Home Affairs Talal Chaudhary urged Chief Minister Sohail Afridi to avoid escalating tensions with the Centre, saying the federal government had kept him informed on security issues and scoring political points would only complicate administrative challenges.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Tariq Fazal Chaudhry said in a television interview that no final decision had been made, but confirmed the option was still on the table. The prime minister’s adviser, Rana Sanaullah, offered the same view, highlighting that while the governor’s government was being considered, no measure had been approved and future developments depended on Afridi’s conduct.

PTI president, lawyer Ali Gohar, ruled out the possibility of a governor’s government, arguing that neither the reasons nor the conditions existed. He warned against rumors and said the province should operate strictly under the Constitution.

PTI’s Asad Qaiser criticized the government’s tone and warned of serious political repercussions if the measure were imposed. The party’s parliamentary committee said such a move would fuel instability, weaken law and order and undermine the public mandate.

Qaiser said any attempt to destabilize the provincial government would deepen the unrest, adding that the PTI was still demanding the release of its founder. He described it as a violation of human rights to block meetings with family members and party representatives.

(WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM AGENCIES