Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Faces Backlash as Ramazan Support Funds Stalled

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government is under fire as the “Ramazan Support for Low Income Households” package fails to reach beneficiaries, despite the holy month passing its 15th day. While Chief Minister Sohail Afridi promised a relief of Rs 12,500 for over one million families, the opposition alleges that the Rs 12.83 billion initiative is being used as a political tool for PTI workers.

Administrative Delays Leave 300,000 Families in Limbo

Official documents confirm the provincial cabinet approved the relief scheme on February 11, 2026, yet the Finance Department‘s released funds have hit a bottleneck. Out of the targeted 1,034,000 families, data for only 710,000 has been collected so far.

Mubashir Raza, Deputy Administrator for Zakat and Ushr, explained that the absence of a comprehensive Social Economic Registry in the province forces authorities to verify fresh data for every new scheme. This manual verification by district scrutiny committees has significantly slowed the disbursement process during the peak of Ramazan.

Opposition Alleges Political Favoritism in Beneficiary Lists

The opposition has voiced stern concerns regarding the transparency of the “KP Perspective 2026” initiative. Leaders claim that PTI lawmakers and party office-bearers are hand-picking beneficiaries, while opposition MNAs and MPAs are being systematically sidelined from the distribution process.

“If the government had relied on verified data from the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), the process would have been transparent. Instead, they are distributing public funds among their own workers.” — Opposition Spokesperson.

In response, Advisor to the CM on Finance Muzammil Aslam categorically rejected these claims. He maintained that the delay is purely technical and that payments have been expedited on the Chief Minister’s orders to begin reaching citizens today.

Financial Breakdown of the 2026 Relief Package

The Finance Department has sanctioned a total of Rs 12.83 billion to fund the cash transfers. The budget is split into two primary components to ensure liquidity for the project:

• Grant in Aid: Rs 10 billion.
• Supplementary Grant: Rs 2.8 billion.

Despite these allocations, the lack of digital infrastructure remains the primary hurdle, with thousands of deserving citizens still waiting for the promised financial cushion amidst rising inflation.

What’s Next: Deadline for Total Disbursement

The KP Government has set a new internal deadline to complete the data entry for the remaining 324,000 families by the end of the week. Public pressure is mounting for the administration to integrate with the BISP database to prevent similar delays in future welfare schemes.

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