Pakistan Imposes Emergency and Governor's Rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Islamabad, Pakistan – Pakistan's federal government has taken direct control of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the northwestern province governed since 2013 by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party of jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan.

On Sunday, President Asif Ali Zardari signed an order on the advice of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, imposing a state of emergency and declaring that the provincial government can no longer function in accordance with the Constitution – the legal basis for imposing governor's rule. By Monday, Interior Minister of State Talal Chaudhry said Chief Minister Sohail Afridi had been taken into custody.

At a news conference in Islamabad on Sunday, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said: "The fundamental reason for imposing the emergency is law and order, countering terrorism and protecting innocent people from the horrific consequences of terrorist activities." Information Minister Ataullah Tarar, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and other officials also attended.

PTI has rejected the move. The decision came after talks between the federal government and the party over a planned march on Islamabad demanding the release of the former prime minister collapsed.

Who is running Khyber Pakhtunkhwa?

Under the government's decision, Governor Faisal Karim Kundi will assume the functions of the provincial government. Kundi belongs to the Pakistan People's Party (PPP), an ally of Prime Minister Sharif's government.

Parliament – where Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz), the PPP and their allies hold a majority – will take over the powers of the provincial assembly, in which PTI holds a majority. The order states that the chief minister, ministers, advisers, special assistants and the advocate general "immediately cease to hold office."

Lawyer Hassan Abdullah Niazi in Lahore, a lecturer at the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), offered a different interpretation. He told Al Jazeera: "This does not mean the KP provincial assembly or the province's elected chief minister are permanently removed. It is akin to treating them as unable to function until the emergency is lifted, at which point they must be restored."

Governor Kundi will be assisted by an 11-member advisory council. The military, already deployed in the province, is expected to support the governor and his team in maintaining law and order.

A separate federal order established a secretariat for 12 "notified districts," mostly in the former tribal areas along the Afghan border. The body is headed by an additional chief secretary, with its directives carrying the same legal force as the provincial government.

At Sunday's news conference, Interior Minister Naqvi said: "No province has been divided. It is simply that these are war-ravaged districts that need more resources and focus at this time, so they have been separated."

The order also states that the constitutional requirement to separate the judiciary from the executive "shall not apply" in the notified districts. Constitutional lawyer Rida Hosain in Lahore told Al Jazeera: "The constitutional provision mandating the separation of the judiciary from the executive has been suspended, allowing executive officials to perform judicial functions."

Why has the government invoked both measures?

Article 232 of Pakistan's Constitution allows the president to impose an emergency when security is threatened by "internal disturbance beyond the power of the provincial government to control." Article 234 applies when the governor reports that a province cannot be governed in accordance with the Constitution.

The order cites "terrorist" attacks of "unprecedented intensity of violence" and says the provincial government "has failed to demonstrate the responsibility, will and desire to adequately deal with the terrorist threat."

According to the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS), an independent Islamabad-based think tank, at least 1,066 militant attacks took place in Pakistan in 2025, up from 908 in 2024. PICSS recorded 1,232 attacks nationwide in the first nine months of 2026, surpassing the total for all of 2025. Most occurred in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and southwestern Balochistan.

Law Minister Tarar said: "The situation is so grave and exceptional that the requirements of both provisions are met, so both have been invoked."

Information Minister Ataullah Tarar went further, accusing the provincial government of ties to armed groups. He said: "All cabinet members agreed that the PTI government in KP is colluding with terrorists," but offered no evidence. Interior Minister Naqvi said the government has dozens of pieces of evidence against the provincial government, but has not made them public.

PTI Chairman Gohar Ali Khan questioned why the measure was applied province-wide if security concerns were concentrated in only a few districts. He said at a news conference in Islamabad: "If there is terrorism and an emergency is needed in 12 districts, then why impose governor's rule across the whole province?"

PTI leader Taimur Jhagra, a former provincial finance minister, rejected the accusations. He told Al Jazeera: "Of course the provincial government is fighting terrorism. We accept responsibility for the counterterrorism fight, both individually and collectively. If the issue is terrorism, then Balochistan should have been placed under emergency before KP."

What has happened since Sunday?

PTI says Chief Minister Sohail Afridi and other party leaders are in custody. Jhagra said: "We know the chief minister, provincial president Junaid Akbar, council chairman Babar Swati and several other leaders have been detained. The government has not disclosed where they are."

Interior Minister Naqvi also hinted on Sunday that PTI figures could be arrested. He said: "Certainly, they or anyone necessary for law and order, we will place under protective custody. But those wanted will be arrested, while others will be released as soon as law and order improves."

Information Minister Tarar, relaying Naqvi's remarks at the same news conference, said some PTI figures had been placed in preventive detention. PTI says many provincial ministers and lawmakers were arrested even before Sunday.

Internet monitor NetBlocks reported late on Sunday that network data showed major connectivity disruptions in parts of the province. Authorities in Peshawar, Mardan, Swabi and Nowshera districts closed schools and colleges on Monday.

Meanwhile, in Punjab, Imran Khan's sisters Aleema Khan, Uzma Khan and Noreen Niazi have been detained since September 20-21 under public order laws that allow 30 days of detention.

How long could the measures last?

Provinces have been placed under governor's rule at least eight times since 1949. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, then called the North-West Frontier Province, experienced it in 1975 and 1994.

Because President Zardari acted without a provincial assembly resolution, the Constitution requires both houses of parliament to ratify the emergency within 10 days, meaning before October 21. Sessions of the National Assembly and Senate have been convened for Tuesday. The emergency must also be laid before a joint sitting of parliament within 30 days. It lapses after two months if not approved by the joint sitting. Once approved, however, the Constitution sets no fixed end date. The emergency remains in force until revoked or opposed by a majority of the total membership of both houses.

Governor's rule under Article 234 has its own limits. Parliament can extend it in two-month periods, up to a total of six months. Lawyer Hosain said: "The emergency provisions allow the executive to suspend certain fundamental rights, and there is no fixed time limit on how long an emergency can last, enabling prolonged federal control."

PTI Chairman Gohar said the party will challenge the measures in court and in the assemblies. He said: "We have not formally called off the long march. Our struggle, as I have said, will certainly continue."