MUZAFFARABAD: Six local body institutions’ employees from Neelum and Muzaffarabad districts were arrested by the police on Sunday for unlawfully collecting toll tax from motorists driving to the Neelum valley.

The arrests were made on the direction of Muzaffarabad’s Divisional Commissioner (DC) Ghulam Bashir Mughal, following the reports that some people were unlawfully collecting the ‘toll tax’ amounting to Rs50 from each private vehicle at different barriers, mainly along the Neelum valley road.

Mr Mughal told Dawn that three each employees of Muzaffarabad and Neelum district councils were arrested from the town of Patikka and Athmuqam.

“What they were doing was simply extortion and thus it was bringing a bad name to our area,” he said.

The DC added that the local body staff could only collect tax from public transport vehicles and that too at designated spots.

Published in Dawn, Aug 4th, 2014