LANDI KOTAL: The enraged tribesmen besieged the offices of local administration in Jamrud and blocked Peshawar-Torkham Highway for over three hours to register their protest against the visit of police officials to Khyber tribal district on Tuesday. DSP Hayatabad circle Rahim Hussain Khan had to take refuge in the offices of local administration in Jamrud when the angry protesters forced their entry into the premises and started kicking and knocking at the doors of office of local tehsildar.

A heavy contingent of Khasadar and Levies escorted DSP Rahim Hussain Khan to his official vehicle amid vociferous sloganeering by the protesting tribesmen. Some of them also resorted to pelting the vehicle of police official with stones while he drove out of the official premises and Khasadar and Levies personnel helplessly tried to prevent them. Assistant Commissioner Salim Marwat also tried to pacify the angry protesters and sought the help of some proadministration elders to bring the situation under control.

The protesters then converged at the historic Bab-i- Khyber and blocked the main highway while chanting slogans against the government plan of extending police law to the tribal districts.

A similar protest was also held in Takia locality of Landi Kotal where another group of angry tribesmen blocked the road by placing large stones on it. The protest was organised against the visit of a SSP Kashif Khan to Landi Kotal.

Local officials said that Peshawar police officials were visiting the region to discuss possibilities of extension of Police Act and to identify locations for police stations in both Jamrud and Landi Kotal. Malak Abdur Razak, an elder of Zakhakhel tribe, told Dawn that they would not allow establishment of police posts and deployment of police in tribal districts till the government provided all the basic facilities of life at the pattern of major cities of the country to the dwellers of militancy-affected tribal regions.

Meanwhile, scores of labourers and porters again held a protest at Torkham against the attitude of National Logistic staff with them at the border crossing.

The protesters ransacked the offices of NLC and chanted slogans against its staff. They damaged the close circuit cameras and air conditioners installed at the NLC offices besides uprooting the sign boards. Sensing danger, the NLC staff had to take refuge in other nearby government buildings.

The protesters said that the border security officials and immigration staff had only on Monday exempted them from acquiring visa for their cross-border movement but the NLC staff again denied them going to Afghanistan and coming back to Pakistan without visa and passport.

Published in Dawn, October 31st, 2018