SWAT: People from different walks of life took to the streets in Charbagh tehsil here on Wednesday to condemn a shooting incident outside a girls school on Tuesday involving a policeman, which left a girl dead and seven others, including a teacher, injured.

The demonstration was held in the Charbagh Bazaar organised by Matorzee Qami Jirga Charbagh. Civil society activists, youth and elders participated in the protest.

The protesters demanded an inquiry against the policeman, who opened fire at a school van outside the Sangota Girls High School. The protesters chanted slogans against the police.

Prominent among those spoke on the occasion were Naveed Iqbal, Sawab Khan, Hilal Danish, Aftab Ahmad, Adalat Khan, Javed Ali and Haider Ali Advocate.

They deplored that the policeman, who was deputed at the school for the security of schoolchildren, had opened fire on the school van.

They claimed some elements in the police were allegedly involved in drug pushing and were gender-biased. They demanded of the higher authorities to purge of the police force of ‘rogue’ elements.

Meanwhile, Swat District Bar Association also condemned the tragic incident and demanded the transfer of the district police officer.

The lawyers formed an action committee to closely monitor the peace-related issues in Swat.

On the other hand, Regional Police Officer Nasir Mahmood Satti issued a letter to all the district police officers in the Malakand division, directing them to immediately conduct a thorough mental fitness assessment of all the police officials.

“Those who were found behaving incongruously or having personality issues, were acutely depressed or biased to gender or creed must be pointed out, referred to medical boards and their services must be terminated as they pose serious potential threat to public safety,” the notice said, adding such police officials must not be appointed on important duties till they were declared fit by the medical boards.

Published in Dawn, May 18th, 2023