ISLAMABAD:
Amid a public row over the “faulty” bulletproof vehicles, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi announced on Wednesday that the disputed vehicles would now be sent to Balochistan.
The move followed KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi’s criticism of Islamabad’s anti-terrorism policy and his claims that vehicles provided by the federal government were “old and defective”.
His remarks drew swift reactions from the Interior Ministry and Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti, highlighting renewed tensions between the Center and provinces over security cooperation.
Balochistan CM Sarfraz Bugti waded into the controversy on Tuesday evening, saying that if KP refused bulletproof vehicles, his province would gladly accept them to strengthen anti-terrorism efforts.
“This is an appeal to the interior minister that if the KP government refuses to take the bulletproof vehicles, they should be transferred to the Balochistan government so that terrorism can be fought effectively,” Bugti said in a post on social media platform X.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi responded to Bugti’s message by accepting the transfer.
“CM sahib, it’s done. These bulletproof vehicles will be sent to Balochistan immediately to boost counter-terrorism efforts. Thank you for raising this issue,” Naqvi said on X on Wednesday morning, confirming that the vehicles rejected by the KP would be redirected to Quetta.
Earlier, Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry had also spoken out on the dispute, accusing Afridi of “playing politics” on terrorism.
He expressed disappointment that “the fight against terrorism and the sacrifices made by soldiers were being overshadowed by politics”, alleging that the PTI-led government in KP “chose not to fight the war against terrorism so that it could use it to blackmail the government”.
