Islamabad: Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has weighed in on the debate about new provinces, arguing that the PPP is practicing a "double standard" when it comes to dividing existing administrative units. The defence minister said that he believed the PPP was in favour of dividing Punjab and creating a separate Siraiki province, but that it raised issues of Sindhi nationalism when it came to discussing divisions in other provincial units.

In a post on X, the minister said that the PP had a "soft corner" for a Siraiki province but that "when there is talk of multiple provinces or administrative units instead of four, the talk of Sindhudesh begins.”

Asif noted in the post that Pakistan's current 36 administrative districts could provide a blueprint for future models, and that any such move would have to be rooted in the Constitution and law, arguing that the devolution of power was “inevitable.”