Peshawar High Court directs KP authorities to end road blockades

The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Tuesday directed the provincial administration and police leadership to immediately reopen all blocked roads and motorways across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, warning that continued closures were endangering lives and worsening public hardship.

Hearing a petition regarding the blockade of major arteries, a bench comprising Justice Ejaz Anwar and Justice Farah Jamshed summoned the province’s Chief Secretary and Inspector General of Police to explain the situation.

According to the 24NewsHD TV channel, the court expressed deep concern over the prolonged road closures, particularly in and around Peshawar.

Justice Ejaz Anwar observed that residents were effectively trapped, with citizens unable to leave the city and lawyers from other districts prevented from attending court proceedings.

In a pointed observation, the judge noted that even his own children had been forced to turn back due to blocked roads, underscoring the scale of disruption.

He reminded officials that the province already faces serious security challenges, including terrorism, and urged them to show compassion toward ordinary people caught in the disruption.

Addressing the IGP directly, the court ordered that roads be reopened without delay. “From today, you will open the roads. People are dying, and you do not consider it a problem,” Justice Anwar remarked, adding that authorities must ensure the motorway remains accessible under all circumstances.

He criticised selective enforcement of the law from provincial authorities, questioning why decisive action was taken in some cases under Section 3 MPO while, in other situations, the police appeared passive.

The IGP informed the bench that roads had been blocked at 16 different points over the past three days, of which 10 had already been cleared.

He also stated that the Safe City e-challan system would soon become fully operational, which he said would improve traffic management and enforcement.

The bench, however, remained unsatisfied with the pace of action. Justice Ejaz Anwar remarked that the province’s traffic management system was worse than that of any other region in the country and suggested that the ruling party’s approach was causing undue hardship to its own constituents.

He urged political actors to protest peacefully but not at the expense of public welfare. He further stated that while the rest of the country remained open, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa appeared isolated by repeated closures.

Following assurances from the IGP that the roads would be reopened the same day, the court adjourned the hearing.

Meanwhile, in Abbottabad, protests linked to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf continued for a fourth consecutive day, with demonstrators keeping the Hazara Motorway closed. The blockade has diverted traffic onto the Silk Route, where congestion has intensified significantly.

Reports indicate long queues of vehicles stretching across key segments of the highway, leaving passengers stranded for hours. Commuters have faced severe inconvenience, and there are claims that ambulances carrying patients and even bodies have struggled to pass through, raising humanitarian concerns.

Reporters: Malik Rehman and Zubair Awan