The situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan is getting worse day by day. The Pakistan government has arrested Chief Minister Mohammad Sohail Afridi in view of the demonstration by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) supporters. Pakistan’s presidential office said a state of emergency was imposed in the northern province on Sunday after anti-government protests by supporters of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan and heightened violence in the northwest. Thousands of Imran Khan’s supporters are marching in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province demanding his release and speaking out against the government due to poor economic conditions.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has announced that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Legislative Assembly Speaker Babar Salim Swati and PTI Provincial Chairman Junaid Akbar Khan have been abducted. The party said in a statement that several of its members have also been abducted in the national and provincial assemblies over the past few weeks.

Meanwhile, Pakistan’s Law Minister Azam Nazir Tarar told a press conference that the provincial government had been dissolved, saying that incidents of extremism had increased during his tenure. PTI Chairman Gauhar Ali Khan termed the declaration of emergency as “a very dangerous and grave political blunder and an undemocratic step”. “People will never accept such actions against their rights,” he posted on Twitter.

Crisis in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

The declaration, under two security-related articles of the Constitution of Pakistan, gives the federal government broad administrative powers over the province. President Asif Ali Zardari signed the order following cabinet recommendations regarding the “law and order situation and failure of negotiations with the government delegation”.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s office earlier said the decision was taken due to the “deteriorating law and order situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and … deliberate negligence of the provincial government in the fight against terrorism”. There have been many terrorist attacks in this area in recent times.

Federal Cabinet meeting was held today in Islamabad under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Mohammad Shahbaz Sharif.

The federal cabinet was briefed about the peace and security situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the deteriorating militancy situation.

The Cabinet reviewed the situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in detail keeping in mind the deteriorating peace and security situation and the provincial government’s conscious engagement with the fight against terrorism.

The Cabinet recommended the Prime Minister to advise the President that considering the gravity of the situation, the President should exercise his constitutional powers to impose Emergency under Articles 232 and 234 of the Constitution of Pakistan in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

An advice has been sent to the President from the Prime Minister’s House in this regard.

— Prime Minister’s Office (@PakPMO) October 11, 2026

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is a stronghold of Imran Khan’s party and Sunday’s special constitutional measures will sideline the PTI government there. Later in a news conference, Law Minister Azam Nazir Tarar confirmed that the provincial government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa “will not function until the situation improves”, adding that the province will be run directly by its governor, who will be assisted by an advisory council.

Tight security, road and traffic shutdown in KP

Tight security was deployed in the provincial capital Peshawar on Sunday and a large number of people were deployed around the chief minister’s residence, while mobile phone networks in the area were affected. Public transport services were suspended and roads were also blocked in other cities of the province. “All roads are closed. There is a democratic government here, with members of the provincial and national assemblies taken hostage,” Abdur Rahman, 32, told AFP in Peshawar.

Referring to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s ethnic majority, he said, “If they impose emergency, it will be like stealing the mandate of our Pashtun people. This should not happen.”

PTI supporters had launched a “long march” demonstration in towns and cities of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa a week ago under the leadership of the province’s chief minister. After negotiations with the government broke down, his plan was to finally reach the capital of Pakistan.

Demonstration demanding the release of Imran

Imran Khan, who is a very popular former cricket star, has been in jail since August 2023. He has been accused of everything from corruption to inciting violence following massive anti-establishment riots in May that year. He and his legal team have denied the allegations, calling them politically motivated. When he came to power.

He has openly accused the military leadership, including Army Chief General Asim Munir, of conspiring to oust him. The military refuses to interfere in politics.

Faced with the threat of civil unrest in recent weeks, the government has tried to prevent the opposition from showing strength on the streets by negotiating with its leaders and linking talks on PTI’s demands with an agreement to beef up security in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The protesters’ demands also include allowing Khan to see his doctors. Negotiations broke down on 4 October, leading to demonstrations.