Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry on Monday criticised newly elected Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, accusing the provincial government of undermining counter-terrorism efforts for political point scoring.
The PTI, which has been in power in KP since 2013, opposes military operations, which tribal people also resist as they often lead to displacements.
The remarks come a day after the KP CM blamed the federal government’s “flawed policy” for the resurgence of terrorism in KP, during his first official high-level meeting since assuming office on October 15, after the former CM Ali Amin Gandapur resigned earlier this month on the directions of party chairman Imran Khan.
He alleged that the federal government was neither giving KP funds allocated under the country’s ongoing war against terrorism, nor “other Constitutional rights”. He also criticised the Centre for providing KP Police “defective and old” armoured vehicles and asked that the vehicles be recalled.
Addressing the media today, the state minister took exception to the KP CM’s earlier remarks and stated, “the operation you are rejecting may serve you well politically, but it will also lead to loss of lives, for which you alone will be held responsible.”
Talal expressed disappointment that the “fight against terrorism and sacrifices made by soldiers were being overshadowed by politics”.
“You don’t want to fight against terrorists, you are scared, you have political motives,” said Talal, alleging that the PTI-led provincial government was choosing not to fight the war against terrorism, “so they could use it to blackmail the government.”
Citing Article 148 of the Constitution, the minister warned that “provinces can not unilaterally make any decision which affects the rest of the country”.
“The fight against terrorism is the entire country’s fight,” maintained the state minister for interior.
On the matter of the CM’s recent appointment, Talal said that it was a deliberate decision to elect someone “who would not hesitate to prioritise political point scoring and his chairman’s narrative over matters of national interests and his responsibilities as the chief minister”.
Responding to KP CM’s comments about “defective bulletproof vehicles”, the minister maintained that “it was unfortunate that CM Afridi was returning necessary equipment to make the Centre look weak for political point scoring”.
“If you did not like the bulletproof cars, then maybe give your own instead,” he said, stressing that the KP govt was “not fighting a war but only wasting time and creating unnecessary drama.”
A day earlier, the minister had called the move “immature” and a setback in the fight against terrorism, the Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) reported.
“What’s unfortunate is that the police officers in KP are fighting terrorists without any equipment,” he said, adding that the provincial govt was “refusing to stand with them.”
He also claimed that there was a “different agenda” at play, stating that “changing the chief minister was never about benefiting the people”.
Although the federal government in August ruled out a new offensive, it continues counterterrorism operations under the National Action Plan.
Pakistan has been witnessing a rise in terrorist incidents, especially in KP and Balochistan, after the TTP broke a fragile ceasefire deal with the state in November 2022 and vowed to target security officials, police, and LEAs personnel.
American Dollar Exchange Rate