Govt committed to maintaining law, order: KP CM

PESHAWAR: Reiterating his commitment not to compromise on law and order in the province, Chief Minister Mahmood Khan on Wednesday said that the provincial government was investing huge resources to cope with the prevailing challenges.

“Maintaining law and order is the first priority of the government and a number of initiatives have been completed to this effect during the last four years, which have resulted in significant improvement in the overall policing in the province,” he said, adding that the additional allowances have been approved for the employees of the Counter-Terrorism Department, whereas other required resources would also be provided on emergency basis.

He expressed these views while chairing a meeting regarding the law and order situation in the province, said a handout.

The forum reviewed the overall law and order situation and important decisions were taken to effectively counter prevailing challenges.

Provincial Minister Taimur Salim Jhagra, Advisor to Chief Minister for Home and Tribal Affairs Babar Salim Swati, Special Assistant to Chief Minister on Information Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif, Chief Secretary Dr. Shahzad Bangash, IGP Moazzam Jah Ansari and other relevant officials attended the meeting.

The meeting was informed that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Police and CTD were working under a well-devised and comprehensive strategy to maintain law and order in the province. It was disclosed that substantial success had been achieved in thwarting the nefarious intentions of extremists, adding that 82 percent of the threats have been neutralised during 2022.

The chief minister said that peace is indispensable for the development and prosperity of the province. “Maintaining law and order has been the first priority of our government since day one,” he added.

He paid rich tribute to the police personnel for their sacrifices in the line of duty. He said that the provincial government had extended all-out support to the police department and would continue to do it in future. However, the chief minister made it clear that maintaining peace and tranquility was their collective responsibility, for which all stakeholders would have to play their respective role in letter and spirit. He directed for heightened coordination amongst the relevant departments and agencies, adding that there should be close liaison among all relevant institutions in order to have an effective response mechanism.