Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has called for major decisions over the security situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, sharply criticising the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-led provincial government after an attack in Dera Ismail Khan killed five people, including two Customs officials.
In a statement posted on X and reported on Thursday, Asif accused the provincial administration of failing to give sufficient priority to counterterrorism while remaining focused on PTI political mobilisation. His criticism was directed at Chief Minister Sohail Afridi and members of the provincial cabinet.
The minister’s remarks followed the October 6 attack in Dera Ismail Khan. The deaths provided the immediate context for his intervention, which added to an already tense dispute between federal and provincial political leaders over security responsibilities and the response to militant violence.
Asif alleged that the provincial leadership had failed to condemn the killings adequately or attend the victims’ funerals. He also claimed that the chief minister had questioned senior provincial officials over their participation in a security meeting convened by the governor. These are allegations made by the minister, not findings independently established in the reporting reviewed for this article.
He went further by alleging that the provincial government had links to terrorist facilitation networks. Business Recorder reported that his statement did not present specific evidence supporting that accusation. The claim must therefore be treated as a political allegation, not as a proven fact.
Asif argued that the provincial government’s focus should be on protecting residents and strengthening the response to militant attacks. He said the security situation required consequential decisions, but the statement did not set out a specific constitutional or administrative measure that had been formally approved.
That distinction matters amid separate political discussion about the possibility of governor’s rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The minister’s call for decisions does not, on its own, amount to a government notification imposing governor’s rule or replacing the elected provincial administration.
The defence minister has also challenged the provincial government’s broader record on policing, prosecution and the use of security-related resources. In remarks reported earlier in the week, he cited figures for terrorism incidents and federal transfers to the province while questioning how the funds had been used. Those figures and his interpretation of them were presented as the minister’s claims, rather than an independent audit of provincial performance.
Security management in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa involves multiple institutions, including provincial police, civilian authorities and federal security bodies. Political disagreement over their respective responsibilities has become more prominent as attacks and counterterrorism operations continue to affect communities in the province.
The immediate human cost is clear from the Dera Ismail Khan killings, but attributing responsibility for the wider security crisis requires evidence beyond partisan statements. Public accountability also depends on distinguishing verified incidents from claims about the conduct or motives of elected officials.
At the time of the Business Recorder report, the PTI-led provincial government had not issued an immediate response to Asif’s latest allegations. Its position should be added if an on-record response becomes available before publication.
The minister’s statement is the latest escalation in federal-provincial tensions over security. Whether it leads to a formal policy decision remains to be seen; no such decision is established by the remarks alone.