PESHAWAR – The Peshawar High Court (PHC) has issued a stern directive to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) administration to immediately restore law and order and ensure that no roads in the province remain blocked.
A division bench comprising Justice Ijaz Anwar and Justice Farah Jamshed heard the writ petitions filed by PML-N MPA Sobia Shahid, advocate Tariq Afghan, and citizen Yousaf Ali.
The petitioners challenged the ongoing blockades by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) workers, which have paralyzed major arteries across the province for several days.
During the proceedings, the court was presented with video evidence showing the harrowing impact of the blockades, including footage of patients in ambulances unable to reach hospitals due to the gridlock.
The bench expressed serious concern over the disruption of public life,The court emphasized that the right to free movement (Article 15) and the right to life (Article 9) cannot be held hostage by political protests.
The court summoned the Inspector General of Police (IGP) and the Chief Secretary (CS) of KP to explain the government’s perceived inaction in maintaining the writ of the state.
In a decisive move to end the provincial shutdown, the PHC ordered that authorities must immediately clear all blocked roads, including the Peshawar-Islamabad Motorway, GT Road, and the Swat Expressway.
The court directed the police to take strict legal action against those responsible for the blockades and those obstructing public movement.
The KP government and police must submit a detailed implementation report by tomorrow, February 18, 2026, confirming that all roads have been reopened to traffic.
“The state must ensure that no individual or political entity has the authority to suspend the free use of public highways, which are held by the state in trust for the people.
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