Joint sitting of Parliament endorses emergency, governor's rule in KP amid opposition outcry

On Thursday, the Parliament convened a joint sitting to endorse the imposition of emergency and governor's rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) at the behest of the central government. The opposition, led by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, vehemently protested the decision. The joint session had been convened to deliberate on separate resolutions concerning the emergency and governor's rule in KP, where the PTI party held authority.

During the proceedings, both members of the ruling party and the opposition benches addressed the assembly, with the government defending its actions and the PTI vehemently opposing them.

The central government implemented the measures on October 11, citing the provincial government's "deliberate disengagement" in the fight against terrorism. The move followed weeks of mounting political tensions and negotiations between the central government and the PTI, following the latter's announcement of a long march to Islamabad to demand the release of its jailed founder, Imran Khan.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi implored the opposition to remain grounded in facts during their recollection of the dialogue with the government. He emphasized that the central government "had no option left" but to impose emergency and governor's rule in KP, claiming that they had made every effort to ensure that the KP government participated in the counterterrorism process.

Naqvi stated that the government had offered the KP government the opportunity to declare emergency in "12 districts," but their counterpart, Asad Qaiser, had accepted the proposal. He added that the government had also attempted to engage the KP government in signing an agreement but advised him to consult with the KP government first.

Naqvi noted that Sohail Afridi, the then-Chief Minister of KP, had not attended any operations with the army and had only expressed his inability to address the situation politically. He recalled his efforts to bridge the divide between the central government and the KP government, including meetings between Afridi and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on the issue of provincial funds. Naqvi dismissed the allegations leveled by the opposition and affirmed that the government was not making any accusations against them.

The joint sitting came a day after both Houses of Parliament had passed separate resolutions endorsing the imposition of emergency in KP, pursuant to Article 232 of the constitution. If the central government acts on its own, the Proclamation of Emergency must be presented to both Houses of Parliament for approval within ten days. The governor's rule under Article 234 is also subject to approval by a joint sitting and is limited to two months, with no possibility of a forceful extension beyond six months.

During Thursday's proceedings, opposition members arrived carrying placards with slogans calling for the rejection of emergency. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who attended part of the session, shook hands with opposition leaders from both the Senate and the National Assembly (NA). At the start of the session, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Tariq Fazal Chaudhry introduced a motion under Rule 232 of the Parliament (Joint Sitting) Rules 1973 to suspend certain sub-rules so that he could introduce the resolutions.

The motion was adopted by a vote of 214-56, with opposition members chanting "emergency na manzoor" and raising their placards.