KHYBER: The chairman of Khyber Qaumi Jirga (KQJ), Haji Bismillah Khan, has expressed grave concern at the rising incidents of armed clashes over property disputes and termed it an offshoot of the flawed plan of erstwhile Fata’s merger into Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Speaking at meet the press programme at Landi Kotal Press Club on Sunday, he said that lack of a proper land and revenue record resulted in rapid surge in property disputes in Khyber tribal district that also caused deaths of some locals.

He said that the untimely and ill-conceived merger confronted the militancy-affected people of tribal areas with more dangerous land and boundary disputes.

The KQJ chief said that extension of judicial system to tribal districts further compounded the already complex situation as majority of the tribal people were ignorant about the court proceedings. He added that the courts too could not properly function as one rival party approached the court while the other opted for a tribal jirga.

Blaming the local police for their failure to control the rising property disputes, he alleged that most of the policemen favoured their own tribe instead of resolving a land dispute.

“Police are also interested in securing land for their checkposts by applying undue pressure on owners rather pushing the local administration to prepare an organised and systematic land revenue record,” said Mr Khan.

Published in Dawn, March 22nd, 2021