PESHAWAR — Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Shandana Gulzar Khan on Tuesday criticized calls for imposing governor’s rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, arguing that the federal government should first address what she described as a severe erosion of state authority in Balochistan.
Speaking at a press conference in Peshawar, Ms. Gulzar said PTI was being threatened with governor’s rule while, in her assessment, the government’s writ had substantially weakened in Balochistan. Her claim that roughly 80% of the government’s writ had been lost was not independently verified in the report.
She also raised concerns about security in her constituency, saying militant attacks were occurring regularly and questioning whether the federal interior minister had visited the affected areas. She further criticized the lack of a publicly released investigation into the Police Lines bombing.
Turning to the economy, Ms. Gulzar said Pakistan was facing worsening economic conditions and high inflation. She accused supporters of the 2024 election results of undermining the Constitution, a political claim that reflects PTI’s broader position.
At the same time, she said her party did not seek confrontation with the military or police, describing both institutions as belonging to the country. “We are people of books, not of airplanes,” she said, according to the report.
Ms. Gulzar also criticized security restrictions in Islamabad, saying the capital had effectively been turned into a city of containers. She said PTI supporters would take part in a planned October 4 demonstration alongside the chief minister and Junaid Akbar, adding that the party would remain committed to the Constitution
