ISLAMABAD (The COW News Digital)Pakistan’s federal government has announced plans to challenge the amended Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police Act before the Supreme Court, arguing that several provisions of the proposed legislation conflict with the constitutional and legal framework governing the police service.
Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry made the announcement during a press conference in Islamabad on Thursday, September 24, while strongly criticising the KP government’s proposed Police Act 2026.
The KP cabinet approved the proposed legislation on Wednesday. According to the draft, the provincial government would have greater authority over the operational, administrative and financial decisions of the provincial police chief, while changes would also be introduced in the procedures governing senior police appointments and transfers.
Chaudhry said provincial governments could legislate on matters within their constitutional jurisdiction but could not introduce provisions that conflicted with the Constitution, federal laws or applicable Police Service of Pakistan rules.
He argued that the proposed changes could affect the existing command structure of the KP Police, a force that has been involved in counterterrorism operations for years.
The minister specifically objected to provisions that would increase the provincial government’s role in appointments and transfers of senior police officers. He questioned whether such arrangements could affect the discipline and operational independence of the force.
According to the proposed legislation, the KP government would have a greater role in decisions concerning the police chief, while certain powers relating to senior officers would also be shifted towards the provincial government. The provincial government, however, has presented the reforms as a mechanism for greater institutional accountability and a clearer separation between policy and operational matters.
KP Information Minister Shafi Jan has said the proposed law would establish separate Police Policy and Police Operations Boards. Under the proposed framework, the Police Policy Board would be headed by the chief minister, while the Police Operations Board would be headed by the provincial police chief. The government has also proposed changes to the functioning of dispute-resolution councils across the province.
Talal Chaudhry maintained that the federal government would examine the legislation from the perspective of the Constitution and existing federal rules. He said the government had several options available and indicated that the amended police law would be challenged before the Supreme Court if necessary.
He also said that if further changes were required at the federal level, the matter could be taken to Parliament for legislation.
The minister further criticised the proposed changes at a time when Khyber Pakhtunkhwa continues to face security challenges and argued that maintaining an effective police command structure was particularly important for counterterrorism operations.
The controversy has also drawn reactions from other political figures. ANP leader Senator Aimal Wali Khan questioned the legality of the proposed amendments, arguing that they could conflict with the Police Order 2002, PSP cadre rules and other applicable regulations.
Meanwhile, KP Governor Faisal Karim Kundi has also criticised the proposed law, saying he would examine it if it reached his office and would object to provisions he considered unconstitutional.
The dispute now places the proposed KP Police Act at the centre of a wider constitutional and political debate over provincial legislative powers, police administration and the relationship between provincial governments and federally governed police service rules. The next stage will depend on the bill’s passage through the KP Assembly and any subsequent legal proceedings.
