Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Secretary General Salman Akram Raja said on Tuesday that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government may present a three-month budget if the party’s founder is not allowed to participate in consultations before June 30.
Speaking to the media on Adiala Road, Raja said he had spoken to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi regarding the province’s budget strategy. He stated that Article 125 of the Constitution permits the presentation of a three-month budget paper, which could be adopted as a temporary measure.
He said the provincial government would only pass a three-month budget paper at this stage and that a final budget would not be presented until consultations were held with the PTI founder.
“The founder’s instructions are necessary, particularly on important issues such as the demand that the province return its share of the national debt to the federation,” Raja said, adding that no meaningful discussion could take place by sidelining the party founder.
He maintained that the founder must be included in all major discussions and warned that if a meeting was not arranged before June 30, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government would move ahead with a three-month budget.
Commenting on regional developments, Raja welcomed the recent peace agreement between Iran and the United States, saying that countries across the region had played a positive role in facilitating the agreement. He specifically praised the diplomatic contributions of Pakistan and Qatar. “It is not enough to merely absorb pressure from foreign countries; it is equally important to take our own people along with us,” he said.
Referring to the situation in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Raja said there was a genuine public movement in the region and alleged that protesters were facing oppression. He rejected accusations that participants in the movement were acting against national interests or working for foreign intelligence agencies.
“Allegations of anti-nationalism and being agents of RAW are baseless,” he said, stressing that the right to peaceful protest is guaranteed to all citizens, including the people of Kashmir.
The PTI leader called for democratic engagement and dialogue to address political and public concerns both in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Kashmir.
KP Assembly Session Postponed Again
Meanwhile, an upcoming session of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Provincial Assembly was postponed once again on Tuesday.
According to an official announcement issued by the Provincial Assembly Secretariat, the assembly session that was scheduled to be held on Wednesday, June 17, 2026, at 2:00 pm has been postponed on the instructions of the Speaker of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly.
The Secretariat said the assembly will now meet on Friday, June 19, 2026, at 2:00 pm.
The postponement comes amid ongoing discussions regarding the provincial budget and PTI's stance on seeking consultations with the party founder before presenting a final budget for the province.