CM Afridi contacts IHC to meet Imran ahead of KP budget

ISLAMABAD:

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister Sohail Afridi on Wednesday sought permission from the Islamabad High Court (IHC) to meet Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan for consultations on the province’s upcoming budget ahead of the next fiscal year.

Speaking to reporters outside the court along with KP financial advisor Muzammil Aslam, the chief minister said the meeting was necessary as the provincial budget had already been prepared and required what he described as the final input from the PTI founder.

He said the mandate given by the people of KP was linked to Imran’s political vision, making consultation on the budget essential.

“We want to consult our leader Imran Khan before presenting the 2026-2027 budget and present it according to his vision,” he said. He added that the people of KP had voted for Imran and expected the provincial budget to align with his political and economic priorities.

Afridi said consultations with Imran before finalizing the budget were necessary and reiterated that a court application had been filed seeking a meeting. He also expressed concern about Imran’s health, saying “25% of his eyesight was affected”, adding that restrictions on his medical treatment and meetings were troubling.

He said not allowing Imran to meet his family, lawyers and party leaders amounted to injustice.

Read: Budget of Rs17.1tr proposed for FY27

Afridi said the province was facing what he called unfair treatment in the distribution of resources, alleging that KP had been sidelined in federal development planning and the previous budget cycle.

The chief minister alleged that KP was being deprived of its financial rights under the National Finance Commission (NFC) award and other transfers, saying Rs12 billion was deducted from the provincial funds.

He said the province had spent more than Rs30 billion on policing in the fight against terrorism.

Afridi claimed the province was being “punished” for its political alignment and that the government was focusing on political retaliation rather than economic issues, adding that inflation, unemployment and poverty continued to rise in the country.

The chief minister also criticized the overall economic situation, saying more attention should be given to improving the living conditions of low-income groups and addressing the growing security challenges in the province. He alleged that terrorism had increased in KP and said the federal government had not responded adequately.

He said industrial units were closing down and capital was moving abroad, while farmers were facing hardship due to what he called harmful government policies. Afridi further claimed that more than 45 percent of the population had fallen below the poverty line.

Afrifi said the national debt had increased from 43 trillion rupiah to 97 trillion rupiah in recent years.

The chief minister further announced that his party would stage a protest outside Parliament during the next budget session, which is scheduled to begin on June 10, and maintained that the provincial government had the power to take its own decisions under the constitution.

Learn more: Budget 2027 and fiscal illusion

The KP financial advisor said a meeting of the Annual Plan Coordination Committee (APCC) was initially scheduled for May 21 but was later held on June 1, adding that expectations of clear decisions had not materialized.

He said the planning minister had “outlined the challenges”, suggesting there were funding constraints at federal level. “He looked visibly concerned about the problems in the province, and he had the impression that even the planning minister himself was upset about the situation,” Aslam said.

He added that Pakistan and other countries usually raise capital from capital markets, noting that the financing deals were concluded through guarantees provided by an Asian bank.

Aslam said the delay in the National Economic Council (NEC) meeting and change in the budget process was a “worrying situation”.

He further claimed that the government was struggling to finalize the fiscal framework, saying there were disagreements with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the coalition partners were also not fully aligned.

Aslam further said that provinces had been asked in an earlier meeting to generate an additional Rs430 billion in tax revenue, adding that provincial governments had questioned the feasibility of such a target.

“We were told to collect the property tax and share it with the federal government,” he said. He added that according to Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) data, Peshawar had generated one of the highest tax revenues.

Aslam said the delay in the budget would be discussed, adding that the government was facing difficulties in its preparation.

He said the coalition government was not prepared to provide relief to its partners. He claimed that Rs225 billion had been allocated in the budget for a single road project in Quetta.

Aslam said the planning minister said there was no development budget available for him, adding that KP had received Rs 2.2 billion for development, while Punjab had received Rs 7-8 billion.

He said that when he was asked about this, he was told that provincial development projects were being disrupted, saying: “When a budget is prepared under pressure, this is what happens.”

Aslam further added that a key meeting of coalition partners was held in Block Q, adding that he was informed that the partners had expressed reservations over the budget.