Cabinet advises Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to ask the president to invoke Articles 232 and 234 as Islamabad raises concerns over the province’s deteriorating security situation.
ISLAMABAD: The federal cabinet on Sunday recommended that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif advise the president to invoke Articles 232 and 234 of the Constitution concerning the possible imposition of an emergency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), citing rising terrorism and a deteriorating law and order situation.
The prime minister chaired a special meeting of the federal cabinet to review the security situation in the province. According to a press release issued by the Prime Minister’s Office Media Wing, a summary in this regard has been sent to Aiwan-e-Sadr.
The cabinet received a comprehensive briefing on the security challenges facing KP and reviewed concerns over the provincial government’s approach to counter-terrorism efforts. Following the briefing, it advised the prime minister to recommend that the president exercise the relevant constitutional powers.
The recommendation does not, by itself, establish that an emergency has been formally imposed.
PM criticises KP government over security situation
Earlier, addressing the cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed concern over rising terrorist attacks, particularly in districts such as Tank and Dera Ismail Khan, where residents have faced the consequences of violence.
The prime minister criticised the provincial leadership for what he described as a lack of engagement with efforts to develop a joint counter-terrorism strategy. He also expressed concern over its response to victims of terrorist attacks.
Shehbaz said federal coalition leaders from the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) had held two days of negotiations with a delegation of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). However, he said the final consensus draft was rejected at the last moment by the KP chief minister.
The prime minister also criticised the provincial leadership over its conduct towards the federal government, referring to concerns about attempts to bring political confrontation to Islamabad.
“We will not remain silent in the face of such a situation. The law will take its course; we will not allow such acts,” he said.
Shehbaz urged federal cabinet members to take firm decisions in response to the worsening security situation.
The cabinet’s recommendation now places the proposed emergency measures within a constitutional process involving the federal government and the president. Any formal action would need to be distinguished from the recommendation announced following Sunday’s meeting.