Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi’s declaration that he is the “biggest supporter of Islamabad province” has added an important dimension to the debate over new provinces in Pakistan. He has also highlighted a fiscal anomaly: unlike the provinces, Islamabad does not receive a share under the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award.
The minister’s proposal deserves support. Islamabad has grown from a small administrative capital into a territory of around 2.5 million people, yet its residents have no provincial assembly, elected chief minister or provincial cabinet directly accountable for their development and administration. Much of the city’s development and municipal expenditure is managed through the Capital Development Authority (CDA), which generates substantial revenues from land, property and other sources.
But if Islamabad is to become a province, a fundamental question arises: should it be confined to the present boundaries of the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT)?
The constitution gives provinces equal representation in the Senate, regardless of their different populations and geographical sizes. This protects smaller federating units against domination by larger ones. If the ICT – essentially one district – becomes a province, it would gain Senate representation on the same provincial basis as much larger federating units. This raises a legitimate question of federal balance.
The solution is not to reject the interior minister’s proposal, but to broaden it. Pakistan should consider a Federal Capital Province comprising Islamabad and substantial parts of the Potohar and Hazara regions. Islamabad has strong geographical, historical and economic links with Rawalpindi, Murree, Attock, Chakwal and Jhelum in Punjab, and with Haripur, Abbottabad and Mansehra in the Hazara region of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. These areas are connected with the capital through transport, commerce, employment and population movement.
A larger province would have a more appropriate population, territory, resource base and administrative capacity to function as a viable federating unit, making its equal representation in the Senate more justifiable. Its precise boundaries should not be predetermined. As the Interior Minister himself has emphasised, restructuring requires political consensus and public consent. A constitutional and administrative commission could examine population, geography, economic viability, resources, cultural affinities and, most importantly, the wishes of the people concerned.
There are strong governance reasons for such a province as well. Islamabad’s administration is fragmented among the federal government, the CDA, the district administration and other institutions. While its planned sectors generally enjoy better facilities, many peripheral areas still lack roads, water, sanitation, education and healthcare.
Similar development concerns exist in parts of Potohar and Hazara. Being peripheral areas of the much larger Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces, their local development priorities must compete with the numerous demands of those provinces. A smaller, elected Federal Capital Province could focus more directly on developing its cities, towns and rural areas.
There is also a security dimension. The 2017 Faizabad sit-in by Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan demonstrated how a movement originating outside Islamabad can eventually paralyse the federal capital. Once a large procession reaches Islamabad’s limited entry points, the administration has little operational space without seriously disrupting normal life.
A wider capital province would provide greater administrative and operational depth. Intelligence coordination, traffic regulation, preventive measures and crowd management could begin along major approach routes rather than only at Islamabad’s gateways. This need not diminish the constitutional right to peaceful protest; it could help reconcile that right with the need to prevent prolonged paralysis of the national capital.
Islamabad International Airport illustrates another territorial anomaly. Although it is the capital’s principal international gateway, it lies outside the ICT. A wider capital-region administration could enable more integrated planning of transport, infrastructure, policing, emergency response and urban expansion.
Creating a Federal Capital Province would not require the federal government to surrender responsibility for the national capital’s security. The elected provincial government could largely handle development, health, education, housing, municipal administration, land management and regional planning. Development bodies such as the CDA and Rawalpindi Development Authority could also fall within its domain.
The federal government could retain responsibility for constructing and maintaining federal offices and residences. Similarly, police and public order within the present Islamabad Capital Territory could remain under the Federal Government through the Ministry of Interior, given the special security requirements of parliament, the Presidency, the Prime Minister’s Office, the Supreme Court, diplomatic missions and other national institutions. Provincial status would also give the capital region a proper place in the NFC framework, giving the new provincial government a more structured financial base to develop its cities, towns and rural areas.
Mohsin Naqvi has opened a debate that should go beyond simply asking whether Islamabad should become a province. The more important question is what territorial and constitutional structure would make a Federal Capital Province viable and balanced within Pakistan’s federation.
The answer may lie in a Federal Capital Province comprising Islamabad and substantial parts of Potohar and Hazara – a viable federating unit capable of providing democratic representation while giving the national capital the governance, resources and administrative depth it requires. Such an arrangement could also respond, at least partly, to existing aspirations for separate Potohar/northern Punjab and Hazara division. Instead of approaching these demands separately, a carefully designed Federal Capital Province could provide a practical framework for addressing them while strengthening the governance of Pakistan’s national capital.
The writer is a former IGP Islamabad and visiting faculty at the National Police Academy, Islamabad.
