Federal authorities issued notices as court hears challenges to K-P emergency

The Peshawar High Court has sought responses from the federal government and senior legal authorities while hearing petitions against the imposition of emergency and governor’s rule in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. Notices were issued to the attorney general, advocate general and other relevant parties after lawyers for the petitioners questioned the constitutional basis of the measures.

A division bench comprising Justice Ijaz Anwar and Justice Muhammad Faheem Wali took up petitions filed by PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan and National Democratic Movement leaders, including Mohsin Dawar. The proceedings mark a fresh judicial development in the dispute over the federal intervention in the province.

The petitioners’ lawyers argued that the provincial administration had not lost control and that the legal conditions required for imposing emergency and governor’s rule had not been satisfied. Barrister Sameer Khosa maintained that the measures had undermined provincial autonomy and democratic governance.

Khosa also told the court that Chief Minister Sohail Afridi and provincial assembly Speaker Babar Saleem Swati were missing and that their whereabouts remained unknown. When Justice Anwar asked whether their production or recovery had been requested, the lawyer confirmed that such relief formed part of the petition.

Referring to the Supreme Court’s ruling in the Pir Sabir Shah case, Khosa argued that an emergency would not automatically prevent the chief minister and provincial cabinet from continuing their duties. He asked the court to restore the provincial assembly and secure the release of Afridi and Swati.

PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja similarly contended that the constitutional requirements for both measures had not been fulfilled. He argued that Afridi remained chief minister and that the provincial cabinet continued to exist, while maintaining that an assembly resolution was necessary for an emergency imposed on grounds of internal disturbance.

Another lawyer for the petitioners, Muazzam Butt, questioned the reported governor’s assessment on which the presidential action was based. He asked the authorities to disclose the report and explain its contents. Butt also argued that concerns about escalating terrorism could have been considered by the Apex Committee, which includes representatives of federal and provincial authorities as well as security officials.

After hearing the arguments, the bench issued notices to the federal government and relevant legal officers. Raja requested immediate consideration of the petitioners’ application for interim relief, but the court said it would examine that request before issuing an order. The federal government imposed emergency and governor’s rule in the province on October 11, while subsequent parliamentary resolutions endorsed the action. The petitions seek to have the measures declared unlawful and the provincial assembly restored.