A fresh war of words broke out between the Center and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) governments on Tuesday when former provincial information advisor Dr Muhammad Ali Saif lashed out at Minister of State for Home Affairs Talal Chaudhry over his claim that the province had rejected bullet-proof vehicles provided by the centre. The exchange came a day after Chief Minister Sohail Afridi returned the armored vehicles, describing them as "old and deficient". Reacting strongly to Chaudhry’s comments, lawyer Saif said the federal minister and his colleagues should "personally tour the border regions in those vehicles to test their supposed quality".
"Talal Chaudhry and other federal ministers should stop commenting on terrorism from the comfort of their luxurious rooms in Islamabad." said. "Talal Chaudhry may be an expert in party organisation, but he is certainly not capable of tackling an issue as serious as terrorism."
He said the poor quality vehicles sent to KP reflect the federal government’s lack of seriousness in fighting terrorism. "The federation has always treated KP like a stepchild. It is a mistake to believe that terrorism is only a problem of the KP. In reality, terrorism is a threat to all of Pakistan," said. The former advisor said the people and security forces of KP had made enormous sacrifices to contain terrorism and prevent it from spreading across the country.
"The KP police and our people have stopped terrorism with their blood. Without timely and decisive measures by the provincial government, this fire would have devastated the entire country," he stated. Lawyer Saif urged the center to "come back to your senses" and expand practical support to KP. He added that the complete eradication of terrorism required the participation of tribal elders and the cooperation of Afghanistan.
"All disputes with Afghanistan must be resolved through dialogue. The tensions between the two countries benefit no one," said. Hours earlier, Minister of State Talal Chaudhry defended the federal government’s decision and stated that the vehicles supplied to the province were "avant-garde and in line with international standards".
"The federal government provided bulletproof vehicles worth Rs 100 million each to the KP police, but the provincial government rejected them on political grounds." Chaudhry told reporters in Islamabad. He said federal ministers and senior security officials were using the same vehicles across Pakistan. "Wherever these vehicles have been deployed, there have been minimal casualties," he pointed out. The minister reiterated the government’s determination to eliminate terrorism with public support, but warned that Pakistan could "We can no longer afford the recklessness of the KP prime minister or the extremist politics of groups like the TLP."
Turning his criticism towards Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), Chaudhry accused the party of exploiting religious sentiment under false pretenses. He said that the recent march of the TLP "claimed to show solidarity with Palestine" but "failed to make a single demand in support of the Palestinian people".
