PTI announces October 4 march on Islamabad as Centre weighs emergency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Former Prime Minister Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has formally announced that it will hold a massive march on the capital, Islamabad, on October 4. The call has heated up the political climate in Pakistan. The protest has caused considerable unease in the Centre, led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, and in the ruling coalition.

Against this backdrop, deliberations have begun at the Centre on imposing an emergency or Governor's Rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), the province governed by the PTI. Senior leaders of the main ruling coalition partners, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), have been discussing the matter. Sharif has held urgent meetings with President Asif Ali Zardari and PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari.

The government has clarified that the idea of imposing an emergency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa under Article 232 is not born of political vendetta. It says the reasons are the steadily rising militant activity in the province and administrative failure. According to Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar, if a provincial government fails to discharge its constitutional and security responsibilities, it is the Centre's duty to take constitutional measures there.

An important meeting of top PML-N and PPP leaders took place in Parliament. PPP leaders Sherry Rehman and Syed Naveed Qamar expressed concern about the situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Senior PPP leader Nayyar Bokhari said the next steps would be taken strictly within the framework of law and the Constitution. Criticising the PTI, he alleged that instead of tackling the people's core problems and the growing terrorism in the province, the party is working only on an agenda to free one person, Imran Khan, from jail.

The PPP has, as usual, stressed political dialogue and advised avoiding confrontation. However, it has also been indicated that the party could quietly support the option of Governor's Rule if law and order in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa slips out of hand.

Meanwhile, the proposed October 4 protest has turned Islamabad into a garrison. The Pakistan government has deployed heavy security to stop protesters from entering the capital. According to sources, more than 22,000 police and paramilitary personnel are deployed in Islamabad and surrounding areas alone. Overseeing them are 8 DIGs, 10 SSPs, 40 SPs and 58 DSPs.

A further 30,000 security personnel have been deployed in the sensitive Attock district, which links Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab. In all, more than 50,000 security personnel have ringed the capital. To stop protesters and their vehicles, roads have been fully shut by placing more than 1,500 large iron containers on the city's main highways, flyovers and entry points.

PTI leaders have issued a stern warning over the Centre's stand. The party has said that if Governor's Rule or an emergency is imposed in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by force, the whole country will have to face serious and sharp political consequences. Prime Minister Sharif is also preparing to contact Leader of the Opposition Mehmood Khan Achakzai to ease the political confrontation.

The Shehbaz Sharif government now faces two big challenges: the steadily worsening security situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on one side, and the political storm created by the PTI march on the other. All eyes are on whether the government will take a final decision on Governor's Rule in KP amid this twin crisis, or choose the path of dialogue.