LANDI KOTAL: Former MNA Hameedullah Jan Afridi has termed the passage of the bill from National Assembly regarding extension of superior courts’ jurisdiction to tribal areas a joke with the people of Fata as Frontier Crimes Regulation (FCR) still exists.

Addressing a press conference on Sunday, he said that tribal people were fed up with FCR and they were expecting the federal government to abolish that unjust system of administration.

He said that the leadership of mainstream political parties hoodwinked the Fata parliamentarians by supporting the bill regarding extension of the jurisdiction of superior courts to tribal areas as tribesmen were already approaching those courts to redress their grievances against the political administration.

Mr Afridi said that presently about 1,800 cases from different tribal agencies were pending before the Supreme Court of Pakistan and Peshawar High Court. He said that details of those cases were available with Fata Secretariat.

Hameedullah Afridi taunts parliamentarians for their failure to abolish FCR

“My own case is under trial at Peshawar High Court against my opponent in the 2013 general elections from NA-46 Bara, Khyber Agency while a political organisation, Khyber Union, has approached the Supreme Court against military operations in Bara,” he said.

Mr Afridi said that even a number of khasadars had approached Peshawar High Court against their premature retirement while a number of appeals about missing persons from different tribal areas were also pending before the superior courts.

He called upon the tribal parliamentarians to resign as they failed to convince the federal government to abolish FCR and win legitimate share for Fata in NFC award along with securing a comprehensive development package for the militancy-affected tribal areas.

Mr Afridi said that those political parties, who had unanimously passed the bill in National Assembly on Friday, were then confused about their own decision and were asking the federal government as to why FCR was not abolished.

“I don’t understand as to why the pro-merger tribal parliamentarians were distributing sweets when FCR is still intact and they have not secured any pledge for the proposed merger plan,” he said. Mr Afridi said that the bill would not bring any tangible change in the life of tribal people as they were still governed under FCR.

Meanwhile, MNA Haji Shahji Gul has said that the newly passed bill is a victory for the oppressed people of Fata.

Talking to delegations of different groups at his residence in Jamrud, he said that days were not far when the tribal areas would get rid of FCR.

Published in Dawn, January 15th, 2018