ISLAMABAD: Irrespective of party affiliations, almost all politicians belonging to the Hazara division, led by Minister for Religious Affairs Sardar Muhammad Yousuf, renewed the demand for the establishment of Hazara Province here on Wednesday.

Addressing a news conference, Sardar Muhammad Yousuf, who is also the chairman of Hazara Province Tehreek, announced the formation of a committee for national-level coordination to lobby for the creation of the province.

“Hazara fulfils all the conditions to be a province,” he said, adding that the announcement had been made after a meeting with the supreme council of the Movement for Hazara Province.

Representatives of various parties, including Senator Muhammad Talha Mahmood of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Murtaza Javed Abbasi of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Captain (retd) Muhammad Safdar, who is also the spouse of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, were present.

Others in the supreme council included former and sitting MNAs and MPAs of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.Sardar Muhammad Yousuf said he would hold meetings with the heads of all mainstream political parties at the national level and parliamentary leaders.

“We will meet our party chief Mian Nawaz Sharif and all the political leadership in the country to explain our position,” he added.

He said that the resolution for the establishment of Hazara province had been passed twice by the KP Assembly, and bills in this regard had also been presented in both houses of parliament.

“We can present the bill in parliament again,” he said.

The speakers highlighted that there were four provinces in the country when the population of Pakistan was around 60 million, and despite the population now reaching 250 million, there are still only four provinces.

They stressed that the establishment of new provinces was the need of the hour and called for the immediate formation of a commission to carry this work forward.

The speakers added that while several new provinces should be created, Hazara province should be the first.

Senator Talha Mahmood of the PPP said that Hazara province was a unanimous and common demand of all parties and that all the conditions for its creation had been fulfilled.

“This step should be taken immediately,” he said, adding, “We will struggle at every level, inside and outside the House.”

Muhammad Safdar said that Hazara was one of the most fertile regions of the country and rich in natural resources, therefore it could meet its financial needs with its own resources.

Responding to a question, he said that the supreme council for the formation of Hazara province had not launched this current drive on anyone’s orders, but rather it was the voice of the entire Hazara people.

Central Coordinator of the supreme council, Professor Sajjad Qamar, said that all-party conferences would be held in all districts of Hazara, in which people of all schools of thought would be invited.

He also warned that, if needed, a public movement would be launched on the streets for the formation of Hazara province.

Published in Dawn, August 28th, 2025