Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Sunday criticised the government for discussing the creation of new provinces amid continuing violence and unrest in different parts of the country. Addressing a convention, he said, "The house is on fire and you are talking about dividing it." He argued that neither the political environment nor the necessary preparations existed for creating new provinces, alleging that the proposal was being pushed at the behest of a powerful institution.

Maulana Fazl claimed that the division of provinces was linked to financial and resource interests, particularly the distribution of revenues under the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award and control over mineral resources. He said the 18th Amendment had increased the provinces' share of revenues and that their share could not simply be reduced. "This is the point over which provinces are being divided so that a new NFC Award can be introduced," he alleged.

He further claimed that mineral resources located within the provinces belonged to their people and warned against attempts to take control of them. Addressing a workers convention, Maulana Fazl also expressed serious concerns over the security situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, claiming that the police chain of command had broken down in parts of the province. He alleged that some police personnel were forming their own peace committees and moving around without uniforms.

He also claimed that the security of the Bannu Deputy Inspector General's office had effectively been placed under the control of a constable. He said the government's writ had weakened in Balochistan and that major roads had become unsafe. "The Karachi-Quetta highway is unsafe. There are checkpoints on our roads and we are stopped for hours," he said. He also referred to attacks in Balochistan, including an incident near Quetta Cantonment, saying innocent people had been killed while the government's writ continued to weaken.