BARCELONA, Spain — Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy of Spain took a tentative step on Wednesday toward seizing administrative control of Catalonia, but he asked the region’s leader to first clarify whether he had actually declared independence from the rest of the country following an unusual series of events the night before.

In a short news conference, Mr. Rajoy called on Carles Puigdemont, Catalonia’s leader, to confirm his intentions, given what the prime minister called “the deliberate confusion” generated by the comments and actions of Mr. Puigdemont and other Catalan leaders on Tuesday.

Pending a response from the Catalan government, Mr. Rajoy said he was initiating a request for his government to invoke Article 155 of the Spanish Constitution — a broad tool that has never been used. The article would allow Madrid to suspend Catalan lawmakers and take charge of the region’s autonomous administration.

But Mr. Rajoy’s action did not commit his government to an emergency intervention, and Mr. Puigdemont was given until Monday morning to respond.