PESHAWAR: An independent member of the National Assembly from North Waziristan, Mohsin Dawar, has expressed concern over his offloading from a Dubai-bound plane by authorities on the ground that his name was on the Exit Control List (ECL).

Speaking at a news conference at the Peshawar Press Club on Sunday, the lawmaker recalled that he along with another MNA, Ali Wazir, was going to the UAE to attend a cultural event in Dubai when security personnel stopped them, saying they were wanted by the Swabi police.

“We had held a peaceful public meeting in Swabi and did nothing wrong, but police registered a case against us without any reason. I approached the court which granted me bail before arrest till Dec 4, but I along with the other MNA was detained at the Bacha Khan International Airport,” he regretted.

Mr Dawar said the Federal Investigation Agency kept him in custody for three days without getting prior permission from the speaker of the National Assembly.

He claimed that their names were put on the ECL a day before their flight to the UAE on Friday. “We are in contact with leaders of various political parties as our arrest is an insult to the mandate of Waziristan’s people,” he said.

The MNA demanded action against those personnel who arrested them.

“We held a meeting with Prime Minister Imran Khan and conveyed to him our demands regarding peace and development in our region. The prime minister agreed to support us and during his recent visit to Waziristan announced many development schemes for it,” he said.

The lawmaker appreciated the government’s stand on Kartarpur corridor and suggested that people of Pakistan and Afghanistan should also be facilitated in the same manner at Torkham, Chaman, Spin Boldak and Ghulam Khan borders.

Published in Dawn, December 3rd, 2018