PESHAWAR: Awami National Party (ANP) has proposed in the constitutional amendment package under consideration to change the name of the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to simply ‘Pakhtunkhwa’.
In a statement issued here on Sunday, the nationalist ANP has maintained that the “Khyber” in the province’s name is actually the name of a district and that the names of other provinces do not refer to any district.
The Parliamentary Joint Committee on Law and Justice has put forward this proposal in the draft amendment under consideration, and it has been reported that the government coalition parties are considering this point.
The ANP says the province should be named “Pakhtunkhwa” to give equal recognition to all Pakhtuns and regions, and not just a regional or district reference.
The proposal comes in the backdrop that issues of national and regional identity have become more prominent in the province, and a name change is likely to create a stronger sense of ownership.
The proposal it said has been included in the draft amendment bill, which is under consideration under the 27th Constitutional Amendment.
The Legislative Committee has held a hearing in this regard and three new clauses have been proposed in the relevant draft, including the change of the name of the province.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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