CHARSADDA: A tenant woman set herself on fire in protest against police action to evict them from houses and land in Ijara village on Thursday while over a dozen people, including police personnel, were injured in clashes with the peasants and their female family members. The woman, who is said to have received severe burns, was taken to the tehsil headquarters hospital.

According to the district administration officials and local residents, women and children of tenants came out of their houses when the police and FC personnel tried to use force to evict them from the land occupied by them in Ijara village of Tangi tehsil.

During the protest, a woman sprinkled kerosene oil on her body and set herself on fire. She got burn injuries and was rushed to the THQ hospital in critical condition.

Later, sensing gravity of the situation the administration decided to give 20 more days to the tenants to leave the land and houses, which belonged to landlords of the area. The decision was made after a meeting with representatives of tenants.

Moreover, nine tenants, including women and children, were injured when armed men of the landlords stormed their houses to evict them in Hando village.

The district administration claimed that tenants had been removed from 285 kanals in Qandaharo, Mir Ahmed Gul and Hando villages.

Deputy commissioner Mutazir Khan and district police officer Zahoor Afridi while addressing a joint press conference said that the police personnel had taken action to reclaim the land occupied by peasants in the light of Peshawar High Court verdict.

They said that the land had been handed over to the owners. They said that some tenants were also arrested during the action.

Published in Dawn, January 26th, 2018