ISLAMABAD: The federal government on Thursday renewed its attack on the previous PTI-led Khyber Pakhtunkhwa administration, accusing it of stonewalling counterterrorism efforts to justify its decision to impose emergency and governor’s rule in the province.
Speaking on a point of order in National Assembly, Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Tariq Fazal Chaudhry contrasted the situation in KP with Balochistan, where, he said, the federal and provincial governments were working in tandem against terrorist groups.
He said the Centre was providing full support for counterterrorism operations in Balochistan and had received no complaints of non-cooperation from the provincial government.
He said the Balochistan government’s approach was in sharp contrast that of KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, arguing that effective counterterrorism efforts required close coordination between the federal and provincial administrations.
Separately, speaking to reporters outside Parliament House, Chaudhry reiterated the government’s readiness to hold talks with the opposition, saying the substance of a meeting between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Opposition Leader in National Assembly Mehmood Khan Achakzai mattered more than its venue.
He said the prime minister was willing to meet Achakzai to discuss matters of national interest and fulfil constitutional requirements.
The remarks came after Achakzai proposed the Constitution Room in Parliament as the venue for a possible meeting with the prime minister, rather than the Prime Minister’s House.
He had earlier declined to attend talks in the National Assembly speaker’s chamber, insisting on a neutral venue.
Referring to the failed negotiations between the government and the opposition, which preceded the move to impose emergency and governor’s rule in KP, Chaudhry said four drafts had been finalised during the talks, but opposition representatives repeatedly sought Afridi’s approval.
The delegation eventually backed away from the fourth draft, he said, because the chief minister had not agreed to it.
He added that Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi had also clarified arrangements for doctors’ access and meetings during the negotiations.
Urging political parties to unite against terrorism, the minister expressed confidence that peace and development would return to KP.
Meanwhile responding to a calling attention notice in National Assembly, State Minister for Interior Talal Chaudhry said that the Capital Development Authority (CDA) was stepping up development work and compensation payments in Islamabad’s long-delayed residential sectors, where disputes over land acquisition, built-up properties and possession of plots remain unresolved.
About the demolition of houses and a graveyard in sectors E-12 and C-16 without compensation for built-up properties, he said a separate CDA member had been appointed to oversee sector development and improve coordination.
In Sector E-12, launched in 1985 with allotment letters issued in 1990, around 95 per cent of allottees had received possession, he said.
Of the 515 identified landowners, 412 had been compensated in cash or land. Around 80 cases remained pending because of disputed claims, family matters and court proceedings, while 11 landowners had not applied.
Compensation had been paid in 1,800 of the 2,251 built-up property cases. Another 155 people had not submitted applications, while 146 cases remained pending, he added.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026