ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari on Sunday imposed emergency rule in the opposition-ruled Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, his office said, amid heightened political tensions and a surge in militancy in the volatile region.

The move, invoked under Articles 232 and 234 of Pakistan’s constitution dealing with security, grants the federal government sweeping administrative powers over KP, where thousands of supporters of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan have been marching to demand his release.

The development comes amid heightened tensions between the government and Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, following the failure of their talks to resolve political issues and disagreements over counterterrorism policy in the northwestern region.

PM Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday presided over a key meeting of his cabinet to review the law-and-order situation in KP and the provincial government’s “deliberate disengagement from the fight against terrorism,” forwarding an advice to the president to impose emergency in the province.

“President Asif Ali Zardari has signed the advice submitted by the Prime Minister regarding the security situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,” the presidency said on Sunday.

“The President signed the summary following the Federal Cabinet’s decision, the Prime Minister’s advice, reports from relevant institutions regarding the law-and-order situation, and the failure of negotiations with government delegations.”

Zulfiqar Bukhari, a senior PTI member, criticized the central government for the move.

“The only legitimately elected government of Pakistan has been overthrown,” he told Arab News, when asked about their response to the emergency.

Khan, a hugely popular former cricket star, has been behind bars since August 2023 and faces scores of charges ranging from corruption to treason and inciting violence, following widespread anti-establishment riots in May that year. He and his legal team reject the allegations, branding them as politically motivated cases aimed at neutralizing his popularity.

The federal government had sought to avoid the opposition show of force, but had also tied negotiations on PTI demands to agreement on security measures in PTI-ruled Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The protesters’ demands included access to Khan by his doctors. Talks broke down on 4 October, prompting the start of the demonstrations.

In his statement on Sunday, KP Governor Faisal Karim Kundi, a state representative in the province, urged the public to refrain from any form of violation of law, incitement, or rioting.

“Strict action in accordance with the law will be taken against those who disrupt law and order and take the law into their own hands,” he warned.