PESHAWAR: Chief Minister Mahmood Khan has alleged that federal government wants to create financial instability and disturb peace in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Chairing a meeting on the law and order in the province here on Wednesday, he termed the indifferent attitude of federal government towards KP a matter of serious concern, according to a statement.

“The indifferent attitude of the incumbent federal government is a matter of serious concern which is causing multiple issues for the province,” said the chief minister. He said that combating militancy and terrorism was responsibility of the federation.

“Combating militancy and terrorism is responsibility of the federation because all the relevant institutions and agencies fall within jurisdiction of the federal government,” he said. He added that federal government wanted to create financial instability in KP and sabotage peace and development in the province.

The chief minister said that he would not compromise on law and order in the province. He added that provincial government was utilising huge resources to cope with contemporary challenges.

“Maintaining law and order is the first priority of provincial government and a number of initiatives have been taken to this effect during the last four years that have resulted in significant improvement in the overall policing in the province,” he said. He added additional allowances were approved for the employees of Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) and other required resources would also be provided to them on war footings.

Mr Khan termed peace vital for development and prosperity of the province. He said that provincial government extended all-out support to police department.

“Maintaining peace and tranquillity is our collective responsibility for which all stakeholders would have to play their role,” said the chief minister. He directed the participants of the meeting to strengthen coordination amongst the relevant departments and agencies.

He said that there should be close liaison among all relevant institutions for an effective response mechanism. “Efforts for welfare and development can only yield results if there is peace in the society,” he added.

Minister for Finance Taimur Salim Jhagra, Adviser to Chief Minister for Home and Tribal affairs Babar Salim Swati, Special Assistant to Chief Minister on Information Barrister Mohammad Ali Saif, Chief Secretary Dr Shahzad Bangash, Inspector General of Police Moazzam Jah Ansari and other officials attended the meeting.

The meeting reviewed the overall law and order situation and made important decisions to effectively counter the prevailing challenges.

The meeting was informed that police and CTD worked under a well-devised and comprehensive strategy to maintain law and order in the province. “Substantial success has been achieved in thwarting the nefarious intentions of extremists as 82 per cent of threats have been neutralised during 2022,” the meeting was told.

Published in Dawn, December 29th, 2022