Emergency Hits KP as PTI March Rolls On: Federal Government Takes Control
On Sunday the federal government finally pulled the trigger and put Khyber Pakhtunkhwa under emergency rule and governor’s rule. President Asif Ali Zardari signed off on it after the cabinet recommended the move. Just like that, the PTI-led provincial government is gone. Powers shift to the governor, Faisal Karim Kundi, and an 11-member advisory committee is being set up to run things.
This didn’t come out of nowhere. The PTI has been on a long march for over a week now, starting from different parts of KP and heading toward Islamabad. They’re demanding the release of Imran Khan and what they call the restoration of constitutional supremacy. Chief Minister Sohail Afridi has been leading from the front, telling supporters the march will keep going no matter what. Convoys were moving through places like Charsadda and Mardan, planning to gather at Swabi Interchange and push further.
The Centre says the real reason is the security situation. They claim the provincial government has been soft on terrorism, that incidents have shot up, and that the PTI administration stopped cooperating properly with federal efforts. Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi put it bluntly earlier — there was no room left to avoid emergency. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had met the President on Saturday to discuss the whole mess, and the cabinet sat on Sunday to formalise it.
Almost immediately after the announcement, reports started flying around that Sohail Afridi and PTI provincial president Junaid Akbar had been arrested. The party is treating it as confirmation, though official police statements have been thin. PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan called the whole thing a grave political mistake and completely undemocratic. He said the people will never accept it. Maulana Fazlur Rehman of JUI-F also weighed in, calling it an attack on democracy and saying his party would keep playing its role both inside and outside parliament.
The army has been asked to assist the civil administration under Article 245. Islamabad itself is on high alert with heavy police deployment. Section 144 has already been in force in Rawalpindi and Murree for weeks. KP police had been given strict guidelines on handling any violent protests, and now the entire province is under a different setup.
For people on the ground in KP this is huge. The province has been the last big stronghold of the PTI after they lost power elsewhere. Supporters who have been walking and driving for days now face a completely changed political map. Some local leaders are still trying to keep the march alive, saying they won’t be intimidated. Others are waiting to see how the new administration handles the convoys still on the roads.
The government side is framing it as necessary to restore order and fight militancy more effectively. They point to rising terror incidents and say the provincial leadership was more focused on politics than security. PTI sees it as pure power politics — removing their last elected government just as their protest was gathering steam.
Parliamentary sessions of both the National Assembly and Senate have been called for Tuesday so the emergency can be debated and, if needed, extended. In the meantime the new chief secretary, Dr Muhammad Fakhr Alam, is already in place and the governor is talking about a “new chapter” for the province.
It’s one of those days when the political temperature jumps overnight. A long march that was supposed to put pressure on Islamabad has instead triggered the biggest constitutional move against a provincial government in years. Whether the protests calm down or flare up further will become clear in the next couple of days. Right now the roads in KP are still full of uncertainty, the federal government is in charge, and the demand for Imran Khan’s release remains exactly where it was this morning.
Sources:
Dawn reports on the presidential approval and cabinet recommendation, 11 October 2026
Geo News live updates on army deployment and political reactions
India Today and Daily Pakistan coverage of the emergency announcement and alleged arrests
Tribune and Nation reporting on the build-up and parliamentary sessions scheduled for Tuesday
Emergency Hits KP as PTI March Rolls On: Federal Government Takes Control
On Sunday the federal government finally pulled the trigger and put Khyber Pakhtunkhwa under emergency rule and governor’s rule. President Asif Ali Zardari signed off on it after the cabinet recommended the move. Just like that, the PTI-led provincial government is gone. Powers shift to the governor, Faisal Karim Kundi, and an 11-member advisory committee is being set up to run things.
This didn’t come out of nowhere. The PTI has been on a long march for over a week now, starting from different parts of KP and heading toward Islamabad. They’re demanding the release of Imran Khan and what they call the restoration of constitutional supremacy. Chief Minister Sohail Afridi has been leading from the front, telling supporters the march will keep going no matter what. Convoys were moving through places like Charsadda and Mardan, planning to gather at Swabi Interchange and push further.
The Centre says the real reason is the security situation. They claim the provincial government has been soft on terrorism, that incidents have shot up, and that the PTI administration stopped cooperating properly with federal efforts. Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi put it bluntly earlier — there was no room left to avoid emergency. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had met the President on Saturday to discuss the whole mess, and the cabinet sat on Sunday to formalise it.
Almost immediately after the announcement, reports started flying around that Sohail Afridi and PTI provincial president Junaid Akbar had been arrested. The party is treating it as confirmation, though official police statements have been thin. PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan called the whole thing a grave political mistake and completely undemocratic. He said the people will never accept it. Maulana Fazlur Rehman of JUI-F also weighed in, calling it an attack on democracy and saying his party would keep playing its role both inside and outside parliament.
The army has been asked to assist the civil administration under Article 245. Islamabad itself is on high alert with heavy police deployment. Section 144 has already been in force in Rawalpindi and Murree for weeks. KP police had been given strict guidelines on handling any violent protests, and now the entire province is under a different setup.
For people on the ground in KP this is huge. The province has been the last big stronghold of the PTI after they lost power elsewhere. Supporters who have been walking and driving for days now face a completely changed political map. Some local leaders are still trying to keep the march alive, saying they won’t be intimidated. Others are waiting to see how the new administration handles the convoys still on the roads.
The government side is framing it as necessary to restore order and fight militancy more effectively. They point to rising terror incidents and say the provincial leadership was more focused on politics than security. PTI sees it as pure power politics — removing their last elected government just as their protest was gathering steam.
Parliamentary sessions of both the National Assembly and Senate have been called for Tuesday so the emergency can be debated and, if needed, extended. In the meantime the new chief secretary, Dr Muhammad Fakhr Alam, is already in place and the governor is talking about a “new chapter” for the province.
It’s one of those days when the political temperature jumps overnight. A long march that was supposed to put pressure on Islamabad has instead triggered the biggest constitutional move against a provincial government in years. Whether the protests calm down or flare up further will become clear in the next couple of days. Right now the roads in KP are still full of uncertainty, the federal government is in charge, and the demand for Imran Khan’s release remains exactly where it was this morning.
Sources:
Dawn reports on the presidential approval and cabinet recommendation, 11 October 2026
Geo News live updates on army deployment and political reactions
India Today and Daily Pakistan coverage of the emergency announcement and alleged arrests
Tribune and Nation reporting on the build-up and parliamentary sessions scheduled for Tuesday
@Rohit Manral
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