LAHORE: Without taking any names, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Friday claimed that the “head of a party” was “extremely upset” about not being appointed the governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

“The head of a party is extremely upset over being denied a role in the new setup in KP and not getting the governorship,” Naqvi alleged while speaking to journalists in Lahore.

He was seemingly referring to Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, who has been critical of the federal government over the imposition of governor’s rule in KP.

This politician, Naqvi said, had remained “dependent on the establishment for decades to advance his political career”.

“These are the same politicians who remained in politics for decades with the support of the establishment, and this politician even relied on the establishment to arrange air tickets for the members of his party,” he further alleged.

He said such politicians had little justification for criticising others now, particularly after having benefitted from the same system they currently denounced.

“Political differences are part of politics. But instead of using inappropriate language and making allegations, political leaders should speak on the basis of arguments and facts,” the minister said.

Naqvi’s remarks come days after the Centre imposed governor’s rule and emergency in KP, citing the provincial government’s “deliberate disengagement” from the fight against terrorism.

The move has drawn criticism from the opposition, including Fazl, as well as Mehmood Khan Achakzai and Raja Nasir Abbas of the Tehreek-i-Tahafuz Ayin-i-Pakistan.

In the days preceding the imposition of governor’s rule in KP, political tensions between the Centre and the opposition — including the PTI which was in power in KP — had remained high since jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s party announced a protest march to Islamabad to demand his release.

Intense negotiations between the two sides a week before the imposition of governor’s rule had failed to yield any results while Fazl was cast as the man who could defuse heightening tensions between the Centre and the PTI. Both sides had held separate meetings with Fazl, reportedly for his intervention to help break the deadlock in the negotiations.

And after the federal government imposed governor’s rule in KP, Fazl accused the Centre of reneging on its commitments amid his efforts for mediation.

On Thursday, Fazl again censured the Centre, accusing it of depriving the provinces of their rights. Addressing a rally in Multan, he further recalled that his party had expressed reservations over the merger of tribal areas into KP after the 25th Constitutional Amendment in 2018.

“We were not against the merger, but we said that it was an issue of the political future of the people of tribal areas,” he said, alleging that the people of those areas were not consulted on the merger.

Raising doubts over the Centre’s reasoning behind imposing governor’s rule that there was a lack of cooperation on counterterrorism, he said the security situation in Balochistan was worse than it was in KP.

He alleged governor’s rule was not imposed in Balochistan because the province’s chief minister “praises you”.

“In KP, the PTI is in power. […] Where opposition is in power, you topple it. And the resources of former tribal areas, which had become part of the province, you have taken control of them by imposing emergency,” he remarked.

During his interaction with journalists on Friday, Naqvi also spoke about the former tribal areas. He was critical of concerns regarding the allocation of resources to former tribal areas.

“When the districts … were not getting their rightful share for years, why were these people silent?” he questioned.

The minister commented that political leaders had failed to speak out for the rights of the people of the former tribal areas at the time, and stressed that the rights and resources of the people of those areas should be treated as an issue above political interests.

Naqvi further said KP was facing serious security challenges, and called on political leaders to play a constructive role in restoring peace and combating terrorism.

“Instead of fanning the flames and creating unrest, political leaders should play their role in restoring law and order and eliminating terrorism,” he said, maintaining that the province needed peace, stability and collective efforts rather than political confrontation.

Separately, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz railed against Fazl in a post on X.

She said it was not expected of a senior politician such as him to support those who facilitate terrorism — an apparent reference to the PTI, which the Centre accuses of backing terrorism.

She added it was unfortunate that he was supporting the party instead of “holding those accountable who were responsible for the ruin of KP because of their incompetence, ineptitude and corruption”.

She also criticised Fazl for his remarks about Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir, seemingly referring to his comments during the Multan address about the centralisation of power.

She concluded her statement by saying that no one but the PTI was “responsible for the end of its government in KP”.