The Senate started its session at the Parliament House in Islamabad this evening with Chairman Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani in the chair.

The House offered Fateha for the departed souls of the passengers who died in a railway accident.

Opposition Leader Raja Nasir Abbas led the Fateha.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi says the emergency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has been imposed as per the Constitution and is solely aimed at eliminating terrorism.

Responding to points raised by Opposition Leader Raja Nasir Abbas in the Senate today, he said that due deliberations were carried out so that no clause of the Constitution would be violated.

Mohsin Naqvi said that the security forces were rendering sacrifices in the fight against terrorism, while the Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, on the other hand, had been making speeches against the martyrs.

He said that the decision to impose emergency was not an easy decision. He said that eighty per cent of those involved in terrorist attacks were Afghan nationals.

Giving background of the situation, the Minister said that the government took the initiative and approached the PTI for a dialogue on the sole agenda of fighting terrorism.

He said that the PTI's negotiating team was convinced of the government's move to fight terrorism with a unified stance, but unfortunately, the Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa torpedoed all the consensus reached so far.

He mentioned that the draft of the negotiations was changed four times, while the government accepted all six suggestions moved by the PTI, but unfortunately, Murad Saeed, who was actually advising the provincial chief minister, sabotaged all the efforts.

The Minister made it clear that the government only pursues a single agenda of fighting terrorism by taking everyone along.

He expressed confidence that the law enforcement agencies will be successful in eliminating terrorism from the country.

Speaking in the Senate, Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar said that the imposition of emergency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is in accordance with the Constitution to address serious security challenges.

He said that Article 232 of the Constitution provides for emergency measures in the event of grave threats, adding that the proclamation would be presented before both Houses of Parliament for approval within ten days.

Ishaq Dar said that the government remained committed to political reconciliation but stressed that the growing threat of terrorism required immediate attention and collective action.

He also called for accountability regarding the use of additional funds allocated to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa under the NFC Award for counter-terrorism efforts.

The Deputy Prime Minister said that the government had made several efforts to promote political dialogue but maintained that reconciliation must go hand in hand with effective measures against terrorism.

The House will now meet tomorrow at 4 p.m.