Nawaz Sharif Backs KP Emergency, Says Action Against PTI Should Have Come Earlier

LONDON: Former prime minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Nawaz Sharif has backed the imposition of emergency and governor's rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, declaring the move was necessary and should have been taken much earlier to stop the province's law and order situation slipping out of control, Geo News reported on Saturday.

Main News Report

Speaking in London, Nawaz said the situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had become increasingly alarming under the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government and that the federal authorities should have intervened earlier, according to Geo News. He maintained that the emergency was an essential step in restoring order and addressing the security and administrative challenges facing the province.

The three-time former prime minister accused the PTI of causing serious damage to the province during its nearly 13 years in power, alleging that successive PTI administrations had failed to deliver effective governance and had neglected the interests of ordinary people.

In particularly strong criticism of the PTI leadership, Nawaz questioned the use of provincial government resources for political confrontation with the federation. "In which country does a chief minister use official resources to attack the federal capital and other provinces?" he asked, according to UrduPoint. He argued that using one province's resources against Islamabad and other provinces undermined responsible governance and the relationship between the federation and its constituent units.

The PML-N president said the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were patriotic Pakistanis who deserved better leadership and governance, and described the end of PTI's provincial rule as a major relief for the province and its people, Geo News reported.

Separately, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif defended the decision to impose governor's rule and declare an emergency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, saying the government had been compelled to act to prevent bloodshed after repeated attempts to resolve differences with the former chief minister failed, Samaa TV reported. Speaking to the media in Gujranwala, Shehbaz accused the PTI of continuing with its planned long march despite negotiations, warning that the government could not remain a silent spectator in the face of security threats.

Background Context

The emergency was imposed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on October 11 after President Asif Ali Zardari approved the move on the advice of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif under Articles 232 and 234 of the Constitution, with the federal government citing the province's worsening security situation. Parliament subsequently approved the measures in a joint sitting, as PakInsight Hub reported earlier.

The remarks from Nawaz come against a grim official security picture. An official report prepared against the backdrop of the emergency recorded 3,767 terrorism incidents in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during the tenure of Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, resulting in 1,149 deaths — 550 security forces and law-enforcement personnel and 599 civilians — and 2,595 injuries, The News reported on Friday.

According to data compiled by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS), 225 militant attacks were recorded across Pakistan in September 2026, up 13 per cent from 199 in August — the third consecutive month of rising attacks and the country's highest monthly number of militant attacks in 12 years.

The PTI has governed Khyber Pakhtunkhwa since 2013, and Nawaz's reference to "nearly 13 years" of PTI rule frames the federal government's case that the province's security collapse is inseparable from prolonged provincial governance failures — a charge the PTI rejects.

Reactions and Statements

Nawaz Sharif's remarks drew the battle lines sharply: "The situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was spiralling out of control and the emergency decision should have been taken earlier," he told journalists in London, according to UrduPoint, which published his comments at 7:27 PM on Saturday.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, speaking separately in Gujranwala, stood by the decision, saying the government had been compelled to act to prevent bloodshed, Samaa TV reported.

There was no immediate formal response from the PTI leadership to Nawaz's remarks in the reports carried on Saturday night. The party has, however, challenged the emergency and governor's rule in court: the Peshawar High Court is scheduled to hear the PTI's plea against the measures on October 20, according to Geo News.

An aide to the prime minister has separately linked the lifting of the KP emergency measures to the PTI "fulfilling constitutional duties," Geo News reported — signalling that the federal government sees the emergency as open-ended rather than time-bound.

Why This News Matters

This is the strongest political endorsement of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa emergency from the very top of the PML-N. As a three-time former prime minister and the party's president, Nawaz Sharif's public backing gives the controversial constitutional move the full weight of the ruling party's leadership — and his "should have come earlier" line undercuts any suggestion of federal second thoughts.

The timing sharpens the PML-N versus PTI confrontation: the remarks landed within a day of the official report documenting 3,767 terrorism incidents and 1,149 deaths during the Afridi tenure, arming the federal government's case with both a security dossier and a political narrative.

For a Pakistani audience, the stakes are immediate — Khyber Pakhtunkhwa remains under governor's rule, its security forces are fighting a record militant surge, and the province's political future now runs through the courts and the federation's conditions rather than the ballot box.

Future Developments

The Peshawar High Court's October 20 hearing on the PTI's plea against the emergency and governor's rule is the next decisive date — a ruling against the measures could force the federal government's hand.

Any formal response from the PTI leadership to Nawaz Sharif's remarks, and whether the party escalates its legal or street-level challenge to the emergency.

Whether the federal government moves to lift the emergency measures — and what the prime minister's aide meant by the PTI "fulfilling constitutional duties" as a precondition.

The composition and conduct of the new KP setup under governor's rule, and whether the security situation that justified the emergency begins to stabilise.

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