Governance and power dynamics in the Princely States of the Northwest Frontier, Pakistan: a historical overview

This research study focuses on the political, administrative, and judicial history of the former princely states during British rule, which were annexed to Pakistan after 1947 as special autonomous territories administered under federal-cum-provincial jurisdiction as the Provincially Administered Tribal Areas (PATA) after 1969. This study covers the princely state's accession to Pakistan, its constitutional and political development during the British occupation, and its constitutional status under the 1956 and 1962 constitutions of Pakistan. Moreover, this study analyses the strategic importance of princely states to British India and of PATA to Pakistan, as well as the reasons for the comparatively longer survival of princely states, and the integration of princely states into Pakistan in 1947 as PATA. The study has thoroughly analysed the governance systems of the princely states and identified the gaps during the princely rule and after they were formally annexed to Pakistan’s mainstream as special regions. The findings reveal that the British and Pakistan have used these areas for strategic purposes, and the democratic setup was not intentionally extended to these regions. The areas still need special attention for the provision of basic infrastructure, improvement of the governance structure and measures for economic development.