PESHAWAR/MINGORA, March 16: The peace initiative launched by the NWFP government in Swat faced fresh problems on Monday when Tehrik Nifaz-i-Shariat Muhammadi chief Maulana Sufi Mohammad asked judicial officers to stop coming to courts and said that any further court proceedings would be in violation of the agreement signed by the government.

Addressing a press conference in Mingora, the Maulana announced that the qazi courts would start functioning on Tuesday and, therefore, judges should stop functioning.

He said the three-member Darul Qaza (appellate forum) for the Malakand division would soon start functioning.

Sources said that Sufi Mohammad’s announcement would disturb the Peshawar High Court, whose judicial officers renamed as qazis were functioning in Swat, and also the provincial government which had held several rounds of talks with the TNSM for restoring peace in the valley.

Sufi Mohammad said that after Feb 16 when the provincial government signed a joint declaration with the TNSM, all decision made by the judges were illegal.

“On that date the normal courts ceased to exist in Malakand division and Kohistan and they are no longer empowered to decide cases,” the Maulana said.

The sources said the statement of Sufi Mohammad was against the stand taken by the government that regular judicial officers would continue to serve as qazis.

They said that the high court had earlier asked the provincial government to clarify the position of its judicial officers.

“We are not part of the agreement signed by the government and Maulana Sufi Mohammad and it is now up to the government to take a decision in this regard,” a senior official of the high court said.

He said that earlier the government had informed them that the existing judicial system would continue to function in the division.

He said that after Sufi Mohammad’s announcement they tried to contact government officials but could not reach them.

The official said the proposed Nizam-i-Adl Regulation was yet to be promulgated and even in the regulation the proposed Darul Qaza had to function under an article of the Constitution dealing with the high court.

The TNSM chief said he would himself examine judgments to be delivered by the qazis and if a verdict was found in conflict with Sharia the qazi concerned would be replaced.

He said that the qazi courts would be set up in phases in other districts of the division, including Upper and Lower Dir, Shangla, Buner, Chitral and Malakand.

About the approval to the summary of the proposed Nizam-i-Adl Regulation by the president, Sufi Mohammad said there was no need of promulgating the regulation because provisions about enforcement of Sharia were already there in the existing regulation (Sharia Nizam-i-Adl).

About Darul Qaza, which would be the first appellate forum against decisions of the qazi court, he said that former district and sessions judge Amir Gulab Khan and Maulana Shamsul Haq had been selected as qazis for Darul Qaza and the third member would be selected soon.
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