Sohail Afridi Trying to Take Police Powers Into His Own Hands, Says Talal Chaudhry
ISLAMABAD: State Minister for Interior Talal Chaudhry has strongly criticized the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government over amendments to police laws and changes to the command structure, saying that provinces are not above the Constitution and law.
Addressing a press conference in Islamabad, Talal Chaudhry said the KP government had damaged the police command structure in the name of legislation. “Are provinces completely free to do whatever they want? If Sindh tomorrow claims it will establish its own navy and Punjab its own railway, would that be possible?” he asked.
He said the Pakistan Police Service rules constituted a settled and uniform legal framework that could not be overridden or altered by any province.
According to the state minister, KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi was attempting to bring the police force under the provincial government’s direct control by retaining the authority to appoint police officers above the rank of DSP. He said such a move could undermine the morale and command discipline of a disciplined force.
Talal Chaudhry also questioned the use of funds allocated to KP under the NFC Award, asking where the Rs800 billion received in the name of the fight against terrorism had been spent.
He said that despite KP having remained on the frontline of the war against terrorism for two decades, Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) offices were still operating in rented buildings.
The state minister claimed that police personnel were being forced to perform duties without bulletproof jackets, while militants possessed security equipment worth between $10,000 and $15,000 each. He said KP police personnel were being deprived of even basic facilities.
He also criticized the provincial government over the funerals of the Kohat incident victims, claiming that no KP minister had attended the funerals and describing this as an injustice to the police force.
Speaking about the possibility of governor’s rule in KP, Talal Chaudhry said the federal government was a political entity and remained reluctant to exercise constitutional powers in a harsh manner.
“We should avoid the last option as long as possible, but if there is no other option left, it cannot be ruled out,” he said.
He warned that if the KP government continued to challenge federal laws and the Constitution, the federal government would approach Parliament and consider legislative and constitutional measures to uphold the supremacy of the Constitution and the law.
