Swat River Tragedy
ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting, Attaullah Tarar, on Saturday called for the immediate suspension of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur in response to the tragic Swat River incident that claimed the lives of at least 12 tourists.
The call came during a press conference in Islamabad, where the minister criticized the KP government for what he described as gross administrative failure and negligence in handling the emergency.
Tarar expressed outrage over the delayed rescue efforts after a flash flood swept away 17 people along the Swat River. “The provincial administration was slow to act, and rescue efforts were not initiated for hours after the tragedy,” he said. “The cries of the drowning tourists went unanswered. Where was the state when the people needed it most?”
The information minister pointed out that although the KP government had suspended the Swat deputy commissioner for negligence, the responsibility should not stop there. “Suspending the DC is not enough,” he asserted. “Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur must be held accountable for this disaster. His government has failed the people.”
Tarar further accused the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the ruling party in KP, of systematically degrading the province’s infrastructure over its 12-year rule. “This incident is not isolated. It reflects the broader decay in governance and public service under PTI’s administration,” he remarked.
In a direct criticism of PTI’s leadership, the minister questioned the absence of aerial rescue operations, noting that helicopters — previously used frequently by PTI’s top leadership — could have been deployed to save lives. “Why was there no helicopter used in this dire emergency? The founder of PTI used the provincial helicopters for personal travel, but when citizens needed them the most, they were nowhere in sight,” Tarar said.
Taking a swipe at CM Gandapur’s allegiance to party politics, Tarar added, “The people of KP elected a chief minister to serve them, not to run the government from the premises of Adiala Jail.” This was a clear reference to Gandapur’s visible loyalty and alignment with PTI founder Imran Khan, who remains incarcerated.
“The real casualty in this tragedy is not just the innocent lives lost, but also the credibility of PTI’s governance,” Tarar concluded.
The incident occurred on Friday when a group of 17 tourists — including 10 from Daska, six from Mardan, and one local resident — were swept away by a sudden and powerful surge in the Swat River. Authorities confirmed that 12 bodies had been recovered, while three individuals had been rescued. Rescue operations remain ongoing to locate the remaining missing persons.
As the search continues, the federal government’s demand for accountability is expected to heighten political tensions between the centre and the KP provincial administration.
