PESHAWAR: Issuing a stern warning to the federal government, Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur on Friday claimed that he had the authority to dissolve the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly at any time, and vowed to resist any attempts to oust the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-led government through what he described as a “financial emergency-based takeover.” In a video message, Gandapur said the budget voting process in the KP Assembly was about to begin, but the party’s founding chairman had not been consulted. “I instruct all our MPAs not to participate in the budget voting,” he said. “If we do not pass the budget, they may use this as a pretext to impose a financial emergency and take over the province.”
Gandapur alleged that a conspiracy to remove the PTI government in KP had been underway since day one. “This is part of a broader plan. It is the governor’s constitutional duty to convene the budget session, but he has failed to do so. The conspiracy started right there.”
He added that the provincial government had presented the budget to PTI’s founding chairman for his input before finalisation. “It is his political right to have a say in the budget. We have consistently stated that we will act on his directives,” he said.
The chief minister sent a strong message to the federal authorities, asserting that they had no legal grounds to disqualify his government. “Let it be clear, the power to dissolve the assembly lies with me, and ultimately, with the party’s founder,” Gandapur declared.
Calling on PTI lawmakers to be prepared for decisive action, Gandapur vowed not to let “their conspiracies succeed.” He said, “Before they act, we will make moves they will never forget. We will take to the streets in full force for our constitutional rights. The movement we will launch will paralyse this entire system.”
The comments come amid a tense political standoff between the KP government and the federal administration over constitutional authority, governance and the treatment of incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan.
