- Law Minister Tarar says terror incidents in province rose 196%.
- Ministers cite worsening security behind emergency decision.
- Naqvi says PTI negotiations continued until midnight.
ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Sunday defended the imposition of emergency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, saying the government faced a choice between witnessing daily martyrdoms or taking a “difficult decision”.
“We had two options: either we witness martyrdoms on a daily basis or take a difficult decision,” Naqvi told a press conference in Islamabad alongside Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar and Information Minister Attaullah Tarar.
Naqvi said the decision had been taken against the backdrop of the security situation in the province, maintaining that the federal government had tried for more than a month to bring the KP government on board in the fight against terrorism.
“Today was not an easy day for us,” the interior minister said, adding that he had personally remained in contact with the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-led provincial government behind the scenes.
“Our objective was to bring them on board so that we could fight the war against terrorism together,” he added.
Naqvi said the federal government had no issue with the PTI’s sit-in, maintaining that it could deal with the protest.
“Our issue is terrorism,” he said.
The interior minister said the government remained in contact with PTI leaders until around 11:45pm and sought their response on proposed changes to a draft.
“I called them at around 11:45pm and asked them to respond so that this situation could be avoided,” he said.
Naqvi said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also met Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman as part of the efforts, but no response was received.
He said the government had earlier held two days of negotiations with the PTI, during which Asad Qaiser had made it clear that his party would cooperate in the fight against terrorism.
According to Naqvi, the draft under discussion was changed three times and revised for a fourth time at the PTI’s request.
“When the fourth draft was finalised, they backed out,” he claimed.
Naqvi said he had also held several meetings with Sohail Afridi, maintaining that terrorism was the only subject discussed during those interactions and that no political matters were taken up.
He said it had been agreed four months ago to enhance police capacity in five districts, with the federal government offering to address a shortage of funds raised by Afridi.
The interior minister claimed that during the first round of negotiations, the provincial side had agreed to the imposition of emergency in 12 districts.
Naqvi said the security situation in those districts was “very bad”, questioning how the PTI had nevertheless taken its long march through the affected areas.
The interior minister maintained that the government’s position was clear that terrorism had nothing to do with politics.
Terror incidents increased 196%: Tarar
Speaking on the occasion, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said terrorism incidents in KP had increased by 196%, describing the figure as the “most alarming” aspect of the situation.
He said terrorism had become a routine occurrence in the province and accused the provincial government of pursuing its politics while neglecting the protection of the public.
Tarar said the federal cabinet decided to impose the emergency after considering the circumstances in the province, adding that the KP governor had also conveyed “very concerning” developments to the federal government.
“Such steps are not taken happily,” the law minister said, maintaining that emergency powers should be exercised in the interest of national security and the country.
Tarar said the president had acted within the Constitution by exercising powers provided under Articles 232 and 234.
He said the provincial government had ceased to function under the emergency, with the governor empowered to administer the province under the federation.
The law minister added that the governor would be assisted by an 11-member advisory council, while a separate secretariat had been established for 12 districts severely affected by terrorism.
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, meanwhile, accused the former provincial government of having a “nexus” with terrorists and alleged that it had effectively “outsourced” some districts to them.
He claimed there was “irrefutable evidence” that the provincial government was pushing KP towards destruction.
The information minister said the advisory council would comprise technocrats, including Lt Gen (retd) Nigar Johar, Kifayatullah Khan, Tariq Mahmood Pasha, Aamir Javed, Dr Aamir Abdullah, Dr Sarfaraz Ali Shah, Dr Muhammad Irshad, Asif Rafiq Afridi, Tayyab Qureshi, Usman Saifullah Khan and Samar Haroon Bilour.
