LOWER DIR: The village council chairmen affiliated with Jamaat-i-Islami on Saturday demanded of the Election Commission of Pakistan to announce a schedule for electing a new Balambat tehsil chairman as the incumbent, Asim Shoaib of Pakistan Tahreek-i-Insaf, had gone into hiding after the May 9 riots, leaving the house without its boss for last five months.

Talking to reporters here, they said Mr Shoaib was wanted by the police and anti-terrorism department in several cases. They said the tehsil chairman should surrender to the police to face charges against him.

Meanwhile, a teachers’ organisation on Saturday announced to stage a rally outside of the Timergara Press Club on Oct 26 against crackdown on their colleagues in Punjab for protesting for their rights.

Talking to journalists, president of Ittihad-i-Asateza Muslim Khan condemned the arrest of schoolteachers in Punjab for protesting for their rights.

He said the police beat up the teachers and then arrested them. He demanded immediate release of all teachers.

He said the schoolteachers would observe a class boycott and stage a protest rally on Oct 26 against the government for amending the pension rules.

ROAD ACCIDENT: Five people were injured when a car and a van collided head-on in Shobaba area in the jurisdiction of Talash police station the other day, residents and police said.

They said the injured, all residents of Chakdara, were taken to a nearby hospital. The Talash police registered a case and started investigations.

Meanwhile, the Peshawar Electric Supply Company officials and police cracked down on power thieves in different areas of Lower Dir on Saturday.

The raiding teams recovered over Rs400,000 from defaulters.

A fine of Rs218,546 was imposed on some consumers for using electricity illegally.

Published in Dawn, October 22th, 2023