KP Governor's Rule: An emergency in the street and state

Back in 2024, the political future of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and perhaps of Pakistan itself, looked like a coin toss. There were two broad possibilities. One was a grand political settlement, perhaps involving a period of exile for Imran Khan, with the United Kingdom replacing Saudi Arabia as the preferred destination. The other was the eventual termination of the last PTI provincial government through constitutional intervention. One of these possibilities has now materialised. There was a third option but this was not the 1990s when you could break a party with defections as its leader served…