Tallal warns proposed changes to KP police law could 'weaken' command structure

Minister of State for Interior Tallal Chaudhry has expressed concerns over the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government's proposal to replace the KP Police Act, 2017. Chaudhry warned that changes to the police command structure could weaken the force's ability to maintain law and order and combat terrorism. The proposed law, which was approved by the KP government, grants the provincial government the authority to approve the IGP's operational, administrative, and financial decisions.

Chaudhry emphasized that policing and maintaining public order are primarily provincial subjects under the 18th Amendment, but provinces cannot legislate beyond the Constitution and existing legal frameworks. He argued that the Police Service of Pakistan rules and other relevant laws provide the necessary framework for the police and cannot be overridden through provincial legislation.

Chaudhry accused the proposed law of dismantling the entire police command structure and stripping regional police officers of the authority to appoint certain grade posts. He also questioned the lack of resources for the KP Police, including lower salaries, inadequate protective equipment, and limited forensic facilities. The minister criticized the proposed composition of the six-member body under the new law, which consists of members of the provincial assembly, and alleged that the government had brought in its own people to exercise control over the police.

Chaudhry stated that the proposed legislation would likely be challenged in the courts and called for the federal government to take action if the matter reached parliament. Meanwhile, KP Governor Faisal Karim Kundi vowed to block the proposed law if it reached his office, describing it as an attempt to make the police subservient to the PTI government.