PESHAWAR, Pakistan — Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf challenged emergency rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa at the Peshawar High Court on Wednesday, according to Reuters, days after President Asif Ali Zardari declared the emergency and suspended the PTI-led provincial government.
The federal government said the provincial administration had failed to tackle a surge in militant attacks in the province bordering Afghanistan, according to Reuters. An opponent from Zardari’s party was put in charge, according to Reuters.
PTI says the move was a pretext for a political takeover and to stop supporters marching on Islamabad to demand the release and medical treatment of jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan, according to Reuters. Close aide Zulfi Bukhari criticized linking Khan’s rights to terrorism, according to Reuters.
Khan’s family and party say his health is worsening and are demanding urgent medical help, citing vision loss in one eye, blood pressure problems and the effects of solitary confinement, according to Reuters. Khan, 74, has been in prison since 2023 and denies the charges against him, according to Reuters.
Ahead of the emergency, Khan’s three sisters and hundreds of supporters were arrested ahead of a planned march, according to Reuters. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan urged the federal government and PTI to resume meaningful dialogue, according to Reuters.
Previous provincial emergencies in Pakistan were reversed within months through courts or political intervention, according to Reuters. No court ruling was reported on Wednesday.
