Information Minister Ataullah Tarar on Tuesday claimed that the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had “welcomed” the federal government’s move to impose governor’s rule and declare an emergency in the province, saying the measures had given them “hope”.

The federal government on Sunday imposed emergency in 12 districts of KP, and placed the province under governor’s rule, taking note of the “provincial government’s deliberate disengagement from the fight against terrorism”.

He made the remarks while addressing a press conference alongside Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar.

Ataullah noted, “Had the people of KP supported the pro-terrorist stance of the PTI government, you would have seen millions on the street.”

However, the minister went on to claim that “barely a dozen” people gathered in protest.

Defending the move, the information minister said, “The people of KP have welcomed the step because they believe there is now hope for them; they believe they will now be provided safety and security, their lives and livelihood will be protected, and this political-crime nexus will be eliminated.”

At the outset of the press briefing, the law minister noted that the province in the recent past had witnessed a hike in terrorist incidents, noting a “195 per cent” rise, with 8,600 terrorist attacks recorded in 2024-2026 compared to 2,900 in 2020-2024.

Azam emphasised that it was essential that counterterrorism efforts taken by federal and provincial agencies be “harmonised”, adding that such an approach was standard practice globally.

“All these arrangements are made to run the country in a way that people feel safe,” he remarked.

At this, the law minister noted the “non-serious” attitude of the previous PTI-led KP government, which said, “has now ceased to exist”.

He recalled that the PTI, allegedly using government resources, “launched an onslaught on the capital”. However, at the time, the imposition of governor’s rule and emergency did not come under discussion.

Describing the situation on the ground in the province, the law minister said, “The KP police were under attack, armed forces deployed in the province were under attack [..] innocent people lost their lives.”

“You cannot shut your eyes after receiving such reports and seeing this rise in terrorist activity,” Azam added.

Preceding the federal government’s decision, Azam recalled that the government had held “constant engagement” with the provincial authorities.

“Unfortunately, their response was somewhat different. Maybe their politics were more important to them compared to having national interest at heart.”

He held that the federal government exhausted “all possible avenues” to resolve the differences. Azam said the provincial government, amid “internal disturbances or the likelihood or apprehension of such disturbances”, should have stepped in.

Here, Azam referred to Article 232, under which the emergency was imposed and said that it “deals with internal disturbances where the law and order situation is such, and the onslaught is of a nature that the provincial government cannot fight against it”.

Referring to the PTI, he said, “Your priorities were not to curb terrorism or to fight against it.

“In such grave conditions, your priority should be to protect the people, not to pursue political gains.”

Azam said it was against this backdrop that the prime minister brought the matter before the federal cabinet, and a decision was subsequently made.

More to follow.