The threat was followed by a protest and forcible takeover of one of the grid stations of the Peshawar city by a provincial MPA, who went on to activate the electricity feeders to restore the electricity supply in the area.

However, in the last week of May, the federal government extended an olive branch to the provincial government. Following a series of dialogues, both the parties made public statements pledging cooperation to control power outages and address system losses and power theft.

At the same time, the rare bonhomie is hardly indicative of a peaceful future between the two warring sides. The current Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has opted for an equally confrontational posture towards allies of the PML-N government.

Political observers had been of the view that the appointment of Faisal Karim Kundi, the leader of the Pakistan Peoples Party in the province, as the Governor of the province, would help break the ice with the provincial government as both the Chief Minister and the Governor belong to the same area. However, PTI continues to maintain its non-reconciliatory stance. Recently, the provincial government banned the Governor from staying at the provincial government-administered Khyber Pakhtunkhwa House in Islamabad, conveying a clear message that it will not soften its tone for the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz or the parties’ allies.

According to political analysts, Imran Khan still remains a popular leader and despite imprisonment, holds the power to influence the country’s political landscape. With a political majority in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, he is successfully disturbing not only the central coalition government but also the establishment.

The opposition leader Mian Iftikhar Hussain accuses Khan of running the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government from behind the bars. “The central government and the establishment are unable to produce a counter-narrative. With this budget stunt, he has established in advance that the reason behind the financial depression in the province is due to the central government not paying their dues. Nobody is asking that the PTI has ruled the province for the last ten years and it was due to their policies that the province is under a trillion rupees debt.”

After the arrival of the Taliban in Afghanistan in August 2021, the internal conditions of the neighbouring country are directly affecting Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. There have been several instances of clashes between the two countries on the Pak-Afghan border. In such a situation, the differences and conflicts between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the Federation can be a precursor to a major crisis at any time.