CM Gandapur rejects Centre's claims of lawlessness, 'ineffective CTD' in KP

• KP chief minister announces Rs1 billion to be disbursed to CTD.
• Says performance of KP's prosecution also improved in his tenure.
• Centre slammed for not issuing uplift funds for merged districts.

After the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government was blamed for misplacing the law-and-order priorities, Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur strongly rejected the Centre's claims of his administration's inability to cope with security challenges and empower Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) in the province.

"The law and order situation has improved in our government," said Gandapur addressing a press conference in Peshawar on Sunday in which he responded to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's statement pointing towards the CTD's ineffectiveness to uproot terrorism in the province.

He added that the counterterrorism department was fully functional and carried out "thousands of successful operations" against terrorists.

He further detailed that the provincial government will disburse an additional Rs1 billion to the CTD. Special cells have been prepared for the department to keep the arrested suspects, he added.

The KP CM went on to say that his administration was also purchasing 20 bulletproof vehicles besides announcing to hand over funds to the CTD personnel for 300 kits and drones.

He added that the quota for martyred officials has been increased from 5% to 12%, as well as, awarding plots to the heirs of the martyrs.

Gandapur also highlighted that the performance of the province's prosecution has also improved during his tenure and more people would be inducted into the prosecution's team next week.

The federal government was creating "confusions" among the KP people, said the chief minister said, adding that the Centre has not disbursed a single penny to the province for counterterrorism.

The provincial government has also yet to receive Rs40 million in terms of uplifting funds for the merged tribal districts, he added.

Kurram tribal issue 'confusing'

Commenting on deadly clashes among rival tribes in Kurram, Gandapur said that the issue was still "confusing".

The deadly tribal clashes continued in KP's Kurram District for the 11th consecutive day, claiming six more lives with eight more wounded despite a 10-day truce was brokered last week, but intermittent violence has rendered it ineffective.

Earlier today, police said that the death toll in the recent incidents of violence has surged to 130 and while the number of people who sustained injuries reached 186.

The continued violence in the tribal town has forced closure of the main Peshawar-Parachinar road for travelling. Whereas, commute at the Pak-Afghan Kharlachi border has also been suspended.

The firebrand chief minister castigated KP Governor Faisal Karim Kundi for summoning an all-parties conference (APC) to discuss the KP’s law and order situation.

"It is not the governor's work to summon an APC [...] I will call an all-parties conference," said Gandapur, emphasising that he was the relevant public office holder to discuss all province-related issues.

"The governor should speak within his [constitutional] capacity until his party [the Pakistan Peoples Party] gets the mandate."

Last month, Governor Kundi had announced to hold an APC in first week of December to discuss the security situation in the province following an increase in attacks on police, security forces and civilians.

Expressing his serious concern over precarious peace situation in KP, the governor said he would meet the political leadership of the province to “get their suggestions as to how to address the law and order situation in KP as well as other issues being faced by the province”, The News reported.

He said the provincial government had not taken any solid measure to improve law and order but instead remained busy in protests and attacks on Islamabad for the release of their party leader.

When asked whether or not CM Gandapur would be invited to the APC, the governor said all the central and provincial leadership of the political parties would be invited and he was the provincial president of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).