Pakistan declared on Sunday a state of emergency in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, with the President suspending the provincial government, his office said, stripping the elected administration of its powers.
The northwestern province is ruled by the party of jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
The decision comes amid a growing confrontation between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's government and the PTI, which has been rallying for several days to pressure the government for Khan's release and has threatened to march on the capital Islamabad in coming days.
President Asif Ali Zardari signed Sharif's advice to declare a state of emergency following a federal cabinet decision, his office said in a statement.
The advice said the provincial government had failed to fight Islamist militancy, according to a statement from Sharif's office.
Major roads in Peshawar were sealed off with shipping containers on Sunday as army and police personnel stood guard in riot gear.
In a statement, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi said no one should take the law into their own hands and no one should engage in rioting or disorder.
Pakistan Election Commission official shot dead in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
A senior official of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) was shot dead by unidentified gunmen in a suspected targeted killing in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Saturday, the police said.
ECP Director General Shamshad Akhtar was killed near Girah Baluch in Tank district, which borders South Waziristan.
The assailants fled the scene after the shooting, while Rescue 1122 personnel shifted the body to the District Headquarters Hospital.
Police and security forces have launched a search operation in the area to track down the attackers.
The ECP, in a statement, expressed deep grief over Akhtar's death, with the chief election commissioner, members of the commission, its secretary and all staff extending condolences to the bereaved family.
(With inputs from Reuters & PTI)
