The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Tuesday directed Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Governor Faisal Karim Kundi to administer the oath of office to Chief Minister-elect Sohail Afridi by 4pm on October 15, ending a two-day delay in the swearing-in process. The court also ruled that if the governor fails to perform the ceremony, the Speaker of the KP Assembly will administer the oath instead.
The decision came as the PHC announced its reserved verdict on a petition filed by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), which argued that the delay in the oath-taking was leaving the province without a functioning government.
The bench, headed by Chief Justice Atiq Shah, stressed that under the Constitution, the oath must be taken without undue delay to ensure continuity in governance.
During the hearing, PTI counsel Salman Akram Raja contended that the governor’s absence from the province had created a constitutional vacuum. Chief Justice Shah remarked that while the governor’s clarification was important, a province could not be left without an active chief minister.
The court instructed the additional advocate-general to confirm by 1pm whether the governor was available to administer the oath, and if not, the assembly speaker or another authorised person should conduct the ceremony.
Earlier, KP Assembly Speaker Babar Saleem Swati had sent a summary to the governor confirming Sohail Afridi’s election as chief minister with 90 votes. However, the Governor’s House said it would await the court’s verdict, as the matter was sub judice.
Governor Faisal Karim Kundi later told that he would return to Peshawar on Wednesday and act in accordance with the Constitution. He mentioned that two resignation letters from former chief minister Ali Amin Gandapur were received, and their authenticity was under review.
The PHC ruling has cleared the way for Sohail Afridi’s oath-taking, set for 4pm on Wednesday.
