By Uzma Ehtasham
An important meeting was convened in Islamabad the previous day, chaired by Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, to deliberate and decide on critical national security issues. The attendees included Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, the Chief Ministers of Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan, Gilgit-Baltistan, and the Prime Minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir. However, the Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sahibzada Saeed Afridi, was notably absent from this crucial gathering.
The meeting had been specifically called to formulate a plan of action to counter the incursions orchestrated by the Afghan Taliban and the Fitna al-Khawarij, which operate as Indian proxies, and to address their terrorist activities within Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. It was decided during the meeting to promptly repatriate illegal Afghan refugees to Afghanistan, with grave concern expressed over the involvement of Afghan nationals in terrorist attacks on Pakistan originating from Afghan soil.
In this context, the participation of the KP Chief Minister was imperative, dictated by the demands of national security and interest, to project a strong impression of national unity and solidarity. Regrettably, the KP Chief Minister deemed it necessary to prioritize his party’s political interests over national imperatives. Upon his election, he has made the singular objective of securing the release of the PTI’s founder the focus of his tenure and has already declared his intention to prevent any military operation against Afghan Taliban terrorists in KP during his term. His non-attendance at this vital meeting appears, on the face of it, to be a clear signal of non-acquiescence to the decisions of the Pakistani federation on matters of national security – decisions which, ironically, were taken to remedy the very scourge of Khawarij terrorism and infiltration affecting his own province, and whose implementation requires the KP government’s pivotal role.
This refusal by Chief Minister Saeed Afridi to participate in a national security council conveys a message of collision with federal policies. This stance runs contrary to the constitutional requirement of harmony between the federation and its units and could potentially undermine the federal parliamentary democratic system itself.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif informed the participants that robust efforts had been made through diplomatic and political channels to prevent Khawarij infiltration from Afghanistan into Pakistan, reminding them that Pakistan had supported Afghanistan in every hour of need for decades. Pakistan has paid a heavy price in the war on terrorism, with thousands of precious lives lost and economic damages running into billions of dollars. He stated that the Afghan interim government was urged to prevent the use of its soil for terrorism in Pakistan, a point pressed during multiple visits to Kabul by Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar and Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif. However, there has been no discernible reduction in the patronage afforded by the Taliban interim government to Indian proxy elements carrying out terrorism in Pakistan. On the contrary, cross-border attacks from Afghan security forces commenced, necessitating a forceful lesson from Pakistan’s armed forces through a comprehensive response. The question was posed: how long can the government be expected to bear the burden of hosting Afghan refugees?
Referring to his telephone conversation with the KP Chief Minister the previous day, the Prime Minister stated that he had assured the KP government of the federation’s full support in all matters. He affirmed that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is a vital unit of the federation, for whose people’s welfare and development the federal government is prepared to extend every possible cooperation. In principle, one would expect a reciprocal spirit of cooperation and goodwill from the KP government towards the federal government, especially under the present circumstances. With our arch-rival India persistently engaged in conspiracies against our security, mobilizing its proxies in the form of the Fitna al-Khawarij to spread terrorism in KP, Balochistan, and other parts of the country, and with the Afghan Taliban, under the Kabul government’s patronage, now complicit in India’s designs to jeopardize Pakistan’s security, the protection of national and state security must be the foremost priority for the Pakistani federation and all its units.
(The writer is a public health professional and possesses expertise in health communication, having keen interest in national and international affairs, can be reached at uzma@metro-morning.com)
