Islamabad (Pakistan Khabar) — Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has sought answers from the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) regarding its policy against terrorism and the law and order situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, raising eight questions.
In a statement posted on the social media platform X, Khawaja Asif said PTI has repeatedly maintained that it was not allowed to formulate a policy against terrorism. He said he has eight basic questions regarding this claim.
The Defence Minister asked that if PTI had been in power in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for the past 13 years and had also been in power at the federal level, who stopped it from formulating a policy against terrorism? What obstacle prevented the implementation of the National Action Plan and the convening of meetings of high-level committees?
He asked what policy was needed to declare terrorists as terrorists, condemn terrorists coming from Afghanistan, and openly stand with the security forces against attacks on the Pakistan Army and the people.
Khawaja Asif said that in recent days, drone attacks were carried out by Afghanistan in Kohat, but why did the provincial government not openly condemn these attacks, and what policy prevented it from doing so?
He further asked how many times the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government had so far protested against or condemned the Afghan government by name over incidents of firing on Pakistani border posts and military personnel from Afghan soil, infiltration, and direct or indirect support for terrorists.
The Defence Minister asked Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi what practical measures had been taken over the past 13 years to eliminate the illegal economy supporting terrorism in the province, including extortion, smuggling and the business of non-custom-paid vehicles.
He asked how many times the Chief Minister had visited the posts of security forces fighting terrorism to express solidarity with them, despite their making daily sacrifices. Similarly, he asked how many times he had personally visited and offered condolences and support to the people of terrorism-hit Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and orphaned children.
As his seventh question, Khawaja Asif asked why attempts were made in different ways to complicate the state narrative against terrorism. He questioned why the Khawarij were not condemned by explicitly declaring them Khawarij and what policy was required for this.
In his eighth question, the Defence Minister said that all these matters suggest that during the 13-year period of government, corruption was promoted in the province and resources were recklessly used. He said PTI’s national and provincial lawmakers accuse one another of corruption involving hundreds of millions and billions of rupees on social media, while a woman member of the National Assembly has also accused the party of embezzling millions of rupees in party funds received from abroad. He demanded an answer to this allegation.