Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi told a press conference in Islamabad on Sunday that the federal government had spent over a month trying to secure the cooperation of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government in a joint campaign against terrorism. He said these efforts came before emergency and governor’s rule were imposed in the province.
Speaking alongside Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar and Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, Naqvi said the government had made repeated attempts to win the provincial administration’s support in countering terrorism. He summed up the mood plainly: “Today was not an easy day for us.”
Outreach to the provincial government and PTI
Naqvi said he had personally stayed in touch with relevant figures behind the scenes to shape a shared counterterrorism plan. He added that outreach to the PTI-led provincial government began before the party announced its long march, and that Islamabad tried to meet PTI’s demands before the protest went ahead.
He said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had planned to meet opposition leaders from both houses of parliament on September 15, then travel to New York on September 17. PTI never confirmed the proposed meeting, Naqvi said, but contacts continued and led to two rounds of talks between the opposition and PTI representatives.
Committee formed and criticism of the long march
Naqvi said Shehbaz Sharif and Asif Ali Zardari met and set up a committee to handle the situation, and that he was a member of it. He said PTI leader Asad Qaiser had conveyed that the party was ready to work with the federal government against terrorism, and that he had urged Qaiser to engage the KP government on joint action.
Naqvi questioned the purpose of the long march, claiming that even some people inside PTI were unsure why the protest was being staged. He maintained that the Centre had approached the provincial administration seeking coordinated action before turning to emergency measures.
